Mahmoud Hessaby
Professor of the
University of Tehran,
Dr. Mahmoud Hessaby was an important Iranian and
Muslim scientist. He was born in
1903 in
Tehran.
At the age of seven he moved to Beirut where he began attending school. At the age of seven he memorized the Qur'an by heart and later he started to read great books of Persian Literature, which are regarded as very sophisticated.
At the early age of seventeen he obtained his Bachelor's in Arts and Sciences from the American University of Beirut. Later he obtained his BA in civil engineering while working as a draftsman. After a short period of time he obtained a BA in Mathematics and Astronomy.
He continued his studies and as a graduate of the Engineering school of Beirut was admitted to the "École Superieure d'Electricité" and in 1925 graduated from this school at the same time he was hired by the French Electric Railway Co He had a scientific mind and continued his research in Physics at the Sorbonne University and obtained his Ph.D in Physics from this University at the age of twenty-five.
According to the Professor Hessaby Institute, the following were some of his accomplishments:
- Founding the Highway Engineering school and teaching there from 1928
- Survey and drawing of the first coastal road-map between Persian Gulf ports
- Founding the "teachers college" and teaching there from 1928
- Construction of the first radio-set in Iran (1928)
- Construction of the first weather-station in 1931
- Installation and operation of the first radiology center in Iran in 1931
- Calculation and setting of Iranian time (1932)
- Founding the first private hospital in Iran (Goharshad Hospital) in 1933
- Writing the University charter and founding Tehran University (1934)
- Founding the Engineering school in 1934 and acting as the dean of that school until 1936 and teaching there from then on
- Founding the faculty of science and acting as its dean from 1942 to 1948
- Commissioned for the dispossession of British Petroleum Company during government of Dr. Mossadegh and appointed as the first general manager of the National Iranian Oil Company
- Minister of Education in the cabinet of Dr. Mossadegh from 1951 to 1952
- Opposing the contract with the consortium while in the senate
- Opposing the membership of Iran in CENTO (Baghdad Pact)
- Founding the Telecommunication Center of Assad-Abad in Hamedan (1959)
- Writing the standards charter for the standards Institute of Iran (1954)
- Founding the Geophysical Institute of Tehran University (1961)
- Title of distinguished professor of Tehran University from 1971
- Founding the atomic research center and atomic reactor at Tehran University
- Founding the atomic Energy center of Iran, member of the UN scientific sub-committee of peaceful use of member of the international space committee (1981)
- Establishment of Iran's space research committee and member of the international space committee (1981)
- Establishment of the Iranian music society and founding the Persian language Academy.
He continued lecturing at University for three working generations, teaching seven generations of students and professors. He spoke four living languages:
French,
English,
German and
Arabic and he also knew
Sanskrit,
Latin,
Greek,
Pahlavi,
Avestan,
Turkish and
Italian which he used for his etymological studies.
In the scientific field: twenty-five research papers, articles and books have been put to print by professor Hessaby.
His theory of "Infinitely extended particles" is well-known among the world scientist. The medal of the commandeur de la legion d honneure, France's greatest scientific medal, was awarded to him for his theories.
Professor Hessaby was the only Iranian student of professor
Albert Einstein,he was known to be his favourite student, and during his years of scientific research he had meetings with well-known scientists such as
Erwin Schrödinger,
Max Born,
Enrico Fermi,
Paul Dirac,
Aage Niels Bohr ....and scholars such as Russel and Andre-Gide.
During the congress of "60 years of physics in Iran" the services rendered by him were deeply appreciated and he was entitled "the father of physics in Iran". Professor doctor Hessaby died on 3rd of September 1992 at the University hospital of Geneva.
As Hesabi had wished he was buried in his mother-land Tafresh.
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