The Institute for Scientific Interchange ( it, Istituto per l'Interscambio Scientifico, ISI Foundation, ISI) is an independent, resident-based research institute known for its work in

complexity science A complex system is a system composed of many components which may interact with each other. Examples of complex systems are Earth's global climate, organisms, the human brain, infrastructure such as power grid, transportation or communication s ...

theoretical A theory is a rational type of abstract thinking about a phenomenon, or the results of such thinking. The process of contemplative and rational thinking is often associated with such processes as observational study or research. Theories may be ...

and

mathematical physics Mathematical physics refers to the development of mathematics, mathematical methods for application to problems in physics. The ''Journal of Mathematical Physics'' defines the field as "the application of mathematics to problems in physics and t ...

. It is located in

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. Th ...

(

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

, EU).

History

ISI was founded in 1983 and supported by the regional government, the province and city of Turin, and by two banking institutions in

Piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

: Compagnia di San Paolo and the

CRT Foundation Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Torino (Fondazione CRT) is a charity organization formed in 1991 by the spin off of the bank activities Cassa di Risparmio di Torino into Banca CRT S.p.A. (a limited company), with the original statutory corporatio ...

. In the 2011 SIR World Report of Institutional Rankings, ISI ranked 28th in Europe for scientific impact, 87th worldwide and 1/4th of the articles produced at ISI are in the top cited 10%. The ISI worked with the CRT Foundation (in particular with the Lagrange Project) and the San Paolo Company.

Activities

Description

The mission of ISI is to promote

scientific research The scientific method is an empirical method for acquiring knowledge that has characterized the development of science since at least the 17th century (with notable practitioners in previous centuries; see the article history of scientific ...

, interchange and cooperation at the highest degree of quality both in terms of creativity and originality of research and to represent a pillar of high level interdisciplinary training. ISI aims to create research groups in innovative and interdisciplinary labs, with a special focus on the science of complex systems. ISI focuses on:

complex networks Complex Networks is an American media and entertainment company for youth culture, based in New York City. It was founded as a bi-monthly magazine, ''Complex'', by fashion designer Marc (Ecko) Milecofsky. Complex Networks reports on popular ...

statistical physics Statistical physics is a branch of physics that evolved from a foundation of statistical mechanics, which uses methods of probability theory and statistics, and particularly the mathematical tools for dealing with large populations and approxi ...

and

quantum physics Quantum mechanics is a fundamental theory in physics that provides a description of the physical properties of nature at the scale of atoms and subatomic particles. It is the foundation of all quantum physics including quantum chemistry, q ...

research

Training

* Joint masters-level program: the Master in

Epidemiology Epidemiology is the study and analysis of the distribution (who, when, and where), patterns and determinants of health and disease conditions in a defined population. It is a cornerstone of public health, and shapes policy decisions and evide ...

, the Lagrange Scholarships * Doctoral studies: possibility to host PhD students wishing to pursue full-time graduate studies under the supervision of an ISI faculty member. PhD students receive their doctoral degrees from a university partner, which can range in locations. * Courses: Selection of planned courses each year, including cross-listed programs with universities and mini-courses given by ISI Faculty, associate faculty, and visiting researchers.

Alumni

Jacob Biamonte Jacob Daniel Biamonte (born January 22, 1979) is an American physicist and theoretical computer scientist active in the fields of quantum information theory and quantum computing Quantum computing is a type of computation whose operations can ...

, Former Research Group Leader of the Quantum Science Laboratory *

Tullio Regge Tullio Eugenio Regge (; July 11, 1931 – October 23, 2014) was an Italian theoretical physicist. Biography Regge obtained the ''laurea'' in physics from the University of Turin in 1952 under the direction of Mario Verde and Gleb Wataghin, and a ...

, First President of the ISI Foundation

Governance

Board of trustees

* Mario Rasetti, president * Valentino Castellani, Regione Piemonte * Pietro Terna, Provincia di Torino *

Piero Fassino Piero Franco Rodolfo Fassino (born 7 October 1949) is an Italian politician with the Democratic Party. He was Mayor of Turin from 2011 until 2016 and is a former national secretary of the Democrats of the Left party.

, Città di Torino * Giovanni Ferrero, Fondazione CRT

Scientific Advisory Board

Porter Bibb Porter Bibb (born c. 1937, Louisville, Kentucky)

, MediaTech Capital Partners * Gunnar Carlsson, Stanford University *

Noshir Contractor Noshir S. Contractor is an Indian-American network scientist who is the Jane S. & William J. White Professor of Behavioral Sciences in the McCormick School of Engineering & Applied Science, the School of Communication and the Kellogg School of Mana ...

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Chart ...

* Kimmo Kaski,

Aalto University Aalto University ( fi, Aalto-yliopisto; sv, Aalto-universitetet) is a public research university located in Espoo, Finland. It was established in 2010 as a merger of three major Finnish universities: the Helsinki University of Technology, the H ...

* Tomaso Poggio,

MIT The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...

Francesco Profumo Francesco Profumo (born 3 May 1953) is an Italian engineer and academic who was Italy's Minister of Education from 16 November 2011 to 28 April 2013. He has been President of the National Research Council (CNR) since August 2011 and had p ...

, IREN S.p.A. * Mario Rasetti, president

References

External links

Institute for Scientific Interchange (ISI Foundation)
{{DEFAULTSORT:ISI Foundation Physics institutes Organizations established in 1983 Universities in Italy Education in Turin Universities in Piedmont