Draft:Alexander N. Guz

Aleksander N. Guz (Oleksandr M. Guz in Ukrainian) (born on 29 January 1939) is a prominent Ukrainian scientist and science administrator, the founder of a scientific school in linearized mechanics of deformable bodies and adjacent areas;, academician (full member) of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (1978) , a member of Academia Europeae, London (1992) and European Academy of Sciences, Brussels (2002), doctor of engineering science (1965), professor (1969), director of many years of S.P. Timoshenko Institute of Mechanics of the NAS of Ukraine, the laureate of the USSR State Prize (1985), twice the laureate of the State Prize of Ukraine in Science and Technology (1979, 1988), Merited Worker of Science and Technology of Ukraine, recipient of V.I. Vernadsky Gold Medal of the NAS of Ukraine (2014), of numerous prizes named after outstanding scientists of the NAS of Ukraine: O.M. Dinnik (1979), M.K. Yangel (1983), S.P. Timoshenko (2000), G.S. Pisarenko (2014), V.M. Glushkov (2016), O.K. Antonov (2017).

Biography
Born in Ichnia town of Chernihiv Oblast of the Ukrainian SSR.

In 1956 finished local secondary school No.5.

In 1961 graduated with honors from the Department of Mechanics and Mathematics of T.G. Shevchenko Kyiv State University (now Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv).

In 1962 defended his candidate-of-science thesis “Approximate solutions of problems on stress concentration around holes in isotropic and orthotropic shells”.

In 1965 defended his doctor-of-science thesis “Thin elastic shells weakened by holes” and became the youngest (26-year-old) doctor of science in the USSR. That was the second time in the more than hundred-year history of S.P. Timoshenko Institute of Mechanics of the NAS of Ukraine that Doctor’s degree was awarded to a very young scientist (the first – in 1930 – had been Nikolai Bogolyubov – future academician, world-renowned scientist in mechanics, mathematics and physics.

In 1969 he got his professorship.

In 1973 was elected a corresponding member of the Academy of Sciences of Ukrainian SSR, in 1978 – a full member (academician) of the Academy of Sciences of Ukrainian SSR.

All his life Aleksander N. Guz has been working at S.P. Timoshenko Institute of Mechanics of the NAS of Ukraine: in 1960–1967 – in the positions of engineer, post-graduate student, senior researcher; in 1967–2023 – the head of a department, in 1976–2022 Institute director; since 2022 he has been advisor to the Institute directorate. In 1983–1988, A.N. Guz concurrently was the Secretary Academician of the Department of Mechanics at the NAS of Ukraine.

Scientific Contribution
His principal scientific results have been produced in the field of mechanics of deformable solid bodies and continuum mechanics. Alexander N. Guz and Belgian scientist Maurice A. Biot (1905–1985) are considered to be the founders of the linearized mechanics of deformable solid bodies. Scientific work of A.N. Guz and his followers in this area has been summarized in 40 monographs. He has made a significant contribution to the development of the following scientific directions: A.N. Guz is the author of 76 monographs (22 of them are single-authored works) and nearly 1000 scientific publications (over 400 of those being single-authored).
 * three-dimensional theory of deformable bodies stability;
 * theory of propagation and diffraction of elastic waves in multi-connected bodies and bodies with initial stresses;
 * concentration of stresses near holes in shells;
 * non-destructive methods of determining stresses in solid bodies;
 * mechanics of composite materials and structural elements made of them;
 * aerohydroelasticity;
 * non-classical problems of fracture mechanics;
 * rock mechanics;
 * dynamics of viscous compressible fluid;
 * nanocomposite mechanics.

One of the innovations introduced by Aleksander N. Guz as the head of S.P. Timoshenko Institute of Mechanics of the NAS of Ukraine was the summarized publication of basic research results obtained at the Institute in multi-volume collaborative monographs. As an editor, he promoted the publication (and personally compiled and edited a number of volumes) of the following fundamental series:
 * «Методы расчета оболочек» (in Russian) [Methods of Calculating Shells] in 5 volumes (1980–1982);
 * «Механика композитных материалов и элементов конструкций» (in Russian) [Mechanics of Composite Materials and Structural Members] in 3 volumes (1982–1983);
 * «Трехмерные задачи теории упругости и пластичности» (in Russian) [Three-Dimensional Problems of the Theory of Elasticity and Plasticity] in 6 volumes (1984–1986);
 * «Механика связанных полей в элементах конструкций» (in Russian) [Mechanics of Coupled Fields in Structural Members] in 5 volumes (1987–1989);
 * «Неклассические проблемы механики разрушения» (in Russian) [Non-Classical Problems of Fracture Mechanics] in 4 volumes (1990–1994);
 * «Механика композитов» (in Russian) [Mechanics of Composites] in 12 volumes (1993–2003);
 * “Advances of Mechanics” in 6 volumes (2005–2011);
 * «Современные проблемы механики» (in Russian) [Modern Problems of Mechanics] in 3 volumes (2016–2018).

Science Administration and Teaching Work
From 1976 to 2022 Aleksander N. Guz headed the leading scientific institution of Ukraine in the field of mechanics – S.P. Timoshenko Institute of Mechanics of the NAS of Ukraine. Since 2022 he has been advisor to the directorate of the Institute. In 1967–2023 he organized and led Institute’s department of dynamics and stability of continuum. In 1983–1988 he was at the helm of the Department of Mechanics set up in the Academy. He is the Editor-in-Chief of the international scientific journal Applied Mechanics, translated and published abroad by “Springer” publishing house as International Applied Mechanics.

Aleksander N. Guz has educated quite a constellation of scientists in mechanics, in particular, 40 doctors of science and over 100 candidates of science (PhDs). Among his disciples are three academicians of the NAS of Ukraine (V.L. Bogdanov, V.D. Kubenko, V.M. Nazarenko) and academician of the NAS of Azerbaijan (G.G. Kuliev), as well as three corresponding members of the NAS of Ukraine (Yu.M. Nemish, I.S. Chernyshenko, M.O. Shulga) and corresponding member of the NAS of Azerbaijan (S.D. Akbarov).

Distinctions
Achievements of Alexander M. Guz in research, science administration and educational activities have won him numerous Ukrainian and international awards. He is the laureate of: Aleksander N. Guz was awarded the honorary title “Merited Worker of Science and Technology of Ukraine” (2016). He was honored with orders of Yaroslav the Wise V Class (2008), “For Merit” III Class (1998), orders and medals of the USSR.
 * V.I. Vernadsky Gold Medal – the highest scientific distinction of the NAS of Ukraine (2014) ;
 * USSR State Prize (1985);
 * State Prize of the Ukrainian SSR (1979, 1988);
 * Prizes of the NAS of Ukraine that were named after outstanding scientists (1979, 1983, 2000, 2014, 2016, 2017);
 * Lenin Komsomol Prize for young scientists (1967);
 * Prize of Lenin Komsomol of Ukraine for young scientists (1973);
 * Blaise Pascal Medal of Academia Europaea (2008);
 * Medal of the International Conference on Computational & Experimental Engineering and Sciences (ICCES) for lifetime achievement
 * Diploma of quality and Gold Medal of the European Scientific-Industrial Chamber for high quality of institute administration (2013).

Aleksander N. Guz is a member of Academia Europaea (London), a Fellow of the New York Academy of Sciences, European Academy of Sciences (Brussels), and also has the title “Fellow of the World Innovation Foundation” (London).