Vladimir Calvera, student of the academic program of Physics, was awarded the first place, with a score of 98/100, in exams of the Department of Physics, an initiative organized by International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP), South American Institute for Fundamental Research (SAIFR) and Perimeter Institute of Canada. The School was addressed to students of the last year of undergraduate in that academic program and it was conducted during the third week of July, at the facilities of the Instituto de Física Teórica de São Paulo. Even though award giving to Vladimir will take place on March 2017, he received a special acknowledgement within the framework of the ICTP-SAIFR 5th Anniversary Symposium. Moreover, he got a full scholarship to follow master studies in Perimeter Institute and in Instituto de Física Teórica of Universidad Estatal Paulista (UNESP).
School of Physics
“”The courses that I took during my undergraduate studies helped me to give the test it had to do with previous knowledge, although, they also prepared me to understand the classes of the school itself”, explained Vladimir. “”In terms of classes, they were five and in English. During the sessions, the following topics were developed: unification of quantum mechanics and special relativity, conceptual introduction to relativity, open quantum systems, integrability and the de-mystified world of elementary particles. Some topics were already known or he had heard from them, in the Physics Colloquia, of which I am a part of the Organization Committee. However, the thing that most called my attention was the module of open quantum systems, since these subjects were more related to the Group of Quantum Optics, to which I belong. At present, the issue that, in general, is more interesting to me is quantum optics; however, I am not sure if I want to specialize in that, I consider that the joint program will help me to make a decision, to the extent it will show me several areas of theoretical physics””.
On the other side, he explained that “”I took two exams, one of them, on the knowledge physics students should have at the end of the undergraduate studies in physics and other on the topics covered in the school””. Since he did not get results via email on the scheduled date, Vladimir thought that he had not had a good performance. However, weeks later, he received a message saying there was a list of the winners of the “”Physics Youth Prize””. He was greatly surprised when he learned he not only won the prize but he had been also chosen for the master’s program. “”Finally, I was invited to São Paulo to narrate my experience in the school, during the 5th anniversary of ICTP-SAIFR, since that event was a commemoration of the beginning of formal cooperation between the parties involved”” he said.