On the evening of March 25, three academicians appeared in front of the students in a general elective course of Nankai University. Zhang Pingwen, Academician of Chinese Academy of Sciences and Vice President of Peking University, stepped on the platform to give a lecture to the undergraduates of Nankai University, in company with Cao Xuetao, Academician of Chinese Academy of Engineering and President of Nankai University, and Ma Zhiming, Academician of Chinese Academy of Sciences and Dean of the School of Statistics and Data Science, Nankai University.

That evening, Academician Zhang Pingwen, with a lecture titled “Applied Mathematics in the Era of Big Data”, introduced the development process of applied mathematics and the prospect of applied mathematics in China from four parts: the history and current situation of applied mathematics, the characteristics of the era of big data, applied mathematics in the new era and its prospects. Zhang Pingwen encouraged teachers and students to jointly expend efforts in improving the training system of talents for applied mathematics and researching the application of applied mathematics, so as to promote Chinese applied mathematics to become a world-class scientific innovative force with Chinese characteristics, and to lead the development of applied mathematics in the world.

“I hope that more famous scholars like him come to give lectures to us!” Xing Hanwen, a sophomore majoring in statistics in the School of Statistics and Data Science, had a strong sense of gain after the class, “The courses we usually take are mainly focused on the basics. But the contents covered in this course allowed us to understand where the knowledge we are learning now can be put to use, what kind of people we can become and what contributions we can make.”

The lecture was broadcast online, attracting many teachers and students of Nankai University. It is learned that this course is the fifth lecture of Nankai University's Led by Masters general education course series Getting Close to Artificial Intelligence and Data Science. In addition to Academician Zhang Pingwen, the chief expert of the course, Academician Ma Zhiming and other famous academicians will also deliver lectures.

“The original intention of this course is to invite renowned professors from all over the world at Nankai to provide high-quality education resources for undergraduates, especially for those who aspire to make contributions to the development of the Party and the country. Cao Xuetao, President of Nankai University, said that Nankai University attaches great importance to undergraduate education. The generations of the backbone of the country coming out of the university's century-old history always encourage Nankai University to adhere to the original aspiration of nurturing talents with moral integrity, and to cultivate the outstanding talents of our time with dedication to public interests and acquisition of all-round capability through the construction of the first-class university, first-class disciplines, first-class majors and first-class courses. “We hope that under the guidance of prominent professors, the younger generation can open their minds, increase their knowledge, and emulate the celebrated masters as they grow up.”

The Led by Masters general education course is a kind of “sensational general elective course officially launched at Nankai University this semester. With academicians and chair professors of various disciplines of Nankai University serving as the chief experts of the course, this series invites top academic giants with great academic influence at home and abroad to give lectures to the undergraduates of Nankai, so that the freshmen can have the opportunity to meet academicians face to face and let them pursue ambitious goals under the guidance of the masters.

(Reported by Fang Lan, photographed by Qiqi Zong, translated by Junlin He, edited by Davide Francolino and JianjingYun)