Good Fertilizer Bears Sound Fruits

In recent years, the international scientific journals “Journal of High Energy Physics” and “Physical Review D” have carried some papers on an anomaly in supersymmetric theory written by An Ok Song, a researcher at Physics Faculty of Kim Il Sung University. Whenever he produces scientific achievements he recollects first the efforts of his teachers.

A photograph

He always carries with himself a photograph taken with Pak Hyon Hui, his class teacher in his middle school days. He was admitted to East Pyongyang Middle School No. 1. One day, his teacher looked over the examination papers of students. She turned her eyes to the paper of An who explained a physical phenomenon in a mathematically modelling way, unlike others who considered it in relationship with life.

Understanding his instinct for studying all principles of natural phenomena in a mathematical way, she began to apply various teaching methods to develop his talents to the full. Her efforts bore good fruits.

Her student proved successful in the national mathematical competitions (category of middle school No. 1) for three consecutive years and developed a program on spatial figures to be highly estimated in the national program exhibition of education sector. He bagged a silver medal in the 48th International Mathematical Olympiads held in Vietnam in July 2007.

In congratulation of his graduation, the teacher had a picture taken with her student and signed behind it: Together with a future scientist.

Two walnuts

An Ok Song was enrolled at Physics Faculty of Kim Il Sung University and received the first lecture from Ko Yong Hae, academician, professor and doctor. The professor started his lecture with a proverb “Rome was not built in a day”, leading students to the world of science.

Under his strict demands and guidance, An studied physics in a systematic way. He paid attention to the pending questions worldwide and set it as his goal to solve them.

One day with his graduation around the corner, the professor visited him and gave two walnuts, wishing him to make substantial sci-tech achievements in his work. Bearing deep in mind the earnest request, he started his career as a researcher at the faculty after graduation.

In March 2016, he submitted his first paper, titled, “Black hole thermodynamics from a variational principle: asymptotically conical backgrounds” in an international scientific journal, stealing the limelight of the world physical arena. He was 27 years old at that time.

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He is now engrossed in solving the pending issues of cosmology under the guidance of Kang Jin U, doctor and associate professor, and other teachers of the university.