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Alessandro PLUCHINO

Associate Professor of Theoretical Physics of Fundamental Interactions, Models, Mathematical Methods and Applications [PHYS-02/A]
Contacts

Office: DFA 319
Email: alessandro.pluchino@ct.infn.it - alessandro.pluchino@dfa.unict.it
Phone: 095 3785423
Web Site: www.pluchino.it
Skype: live:alessandro_3716

Office Hours
Monday from 11:30 to 12:30 | Thursday from 10:00 to 11:00

https://cespesunict.it/homeAlessandro Pluchino is associate professor of theoretical physics, mathematical methods and models and has also the qualification of full professor in Theoretical Physics of fundamental interactions. He is owner of the courses "Dynamic Systems, Caos and Complexity" and "History of Physics and Epistemology" for the Degree in Physics (L-30) and of the course of "General Physics" for the Degree in Environmental and Natural Sciences. He is delegate of research at INFN, local coordinator of LINCOLN and staff member of DYNSYSMATH. He is also member of the PhD course in Complex Systems for Physical, Socio-Economic and Life Sciences (UNICT), of the Italian Physics Society (SIF) and the Complex Systems Society (CSS). He is currently the DFA-Unict referent for the Piano Nazionale Lauree Scientifiche (PLS) Physics, which aims to maintain relationships with upper secondary schools in terms of orientation and self-evaluation of students and teacher training. Since July 2024 he is also Director of CESPES (Centro Interdipartimentale di Studi su Pascal e il Seicento) at Unict. 

His research activity mainly focuses on the elaboration of mathematical and computational models of complex systems, through the network analysis and agent-based models tools, but he also addresses fundamental physics issues, statistical mechanics, complex networks and chaos theory, with applications to biological, geological, ecological, economic and social systems. He is also interested in the development of optimization methods, natural computation and machine learning, with applications to management engineering, infrastructure (with particular reference to energy distribution and seismic and epidemic risk), transport networks, sustainability and climate change. He is Editorial Board member of several scientific journals, among which PLOSONE, ENTROPY and FRONTIERS IN PHYSICS. 

Author of more than 150 scientific publications, among which several books, and speaker at numerous international conferences, he is also actively engaged in scientific dissemination for a non-specialist audience. In the last years, his researches about the role of chance and of random strategies in socio-economic systems have raised a lot of attention at international level. For these studies he has received several prizes. In particular, in 2010 he was awarded, with Andrea Rapisarda and Cesare Garofalo, of the Ig-Nobel Prize for Management at Harvard University and MIT. Then, in 2022, he received a second Ig-Nobel prize, this time for Economics, again with Andrea Rapisarda and with Alessio Emanuele Biondo.

1990-1994: Degree in Physics at University of Catania;

1995-2001: Private activity as co-founder of two different software houses (Worksoft S.A.S – Trecastagni, CT – and Zetanet P.S.C.R.L. – Modica, RG): dealer Autodesk with Asia Computers; teacher in courses of Autocad 2D & 3D; development of CAD projects (2D-3D), databases, internet websites, etc...

2001: Winner at the National Competition for Teaching at Secondary School;

2001-2008: Permanent position as Teacher of Mathematics and Physics (A049) at the “Istituto Statale d’Arte” in Catania;

2002-2005: Ph.D. in Theoretical Physics at the Faculty of Science at the Catania University;

2005-2007: Post-doc fellowship FIS/02 “Fisica teorica, modelli e metodi matematici” at the Department of Physics and Astronomy of the University of Catania;

2007-2008: Collaboration research with the Department of Physics and Astronomy of the University of Catania;2008: Post-doc fellowship FIS/02 “Fisica teorica, modelli e metodi matematici” at the Department of Physics and Astronomy of the University of Catania;

Since 01/01/2009: Permanent position as researcher scientist and assistant professor at the Department of Physics and Astronomy of the University of Catania;

Since 2009: Teaching activity at DFA, course of Statistical Physics and Dynamical Systems, and at SAN, course of General Physics;

Since October 2015: Associate Professor of theoretical physics at the Department of Physics and Astronomy of the University of Catania;

Since 2002: Association with INFN (National Institute for Nuclear Physics), Sezione di Catania;

Since 2014: Local coordinator of the INFN Projects “PIECES”, “PLEXNET” and "LINCOLN"; staff member of the Project "DYNSYSMATH"; 

Since 2010: Co-Director of the LIPARI INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL ON COMPLEX SYSTEMS- Lipari, Italy;

2010: Winner (with Andrea Rapisarda and Cesare Garofalo) of the Ig-Nobel Prize 2010 for Management - Harvard University and M.I.T. (Boston, USA) www.pluchino.it/ignobel_new.html;

January 2014: Qualification at the level of Associate Professor by the Italian National Committee of Theoretical Physics;

Since 2014: Member of the Interdisciplinary Research Center about Diagnosis and Therapy of Brain Tumors, University of Catania;

Since 2015: Member of the Interdisciplinary Study Center about Pascal and ‘600 (CESPES), University of Catania;

Since 2015: “Counselor” for students of the First Degree in Physics, Department of Physics and Astronomy of the University of Catania;

Since 2016: Staff Member of PHD in Complex Systems for Physical, Socio-Economical and Life Sciences, University of Catania;

Since 2017: Member of the Scientific Program Committee of the annual conference “Summer Solstice Conference on Discrete Models of Complex Systems”;

Since 2017: Member of the international Complex Systems Society;

Since 2017: Member of CCS/ITALY, “Italian Regional Conference on Complex Systems”;

Since 2017: Teaching activity at DFA, course “Dynamic Systems, Chaos and Complexity”;

Since 2018: Academic Editor of the scientific JournalPLOS ONE;

Since 2018: Member of Scientific Committee for the “Collana di Computational Social Science”, Franco Angeli Editore;

Since 2018: Research delegate at INFN, Sezione di Catania;

July 2018: Qualification at the level of Full Professor by the Italian National Committee of Theoretical Physics;

Since 2019: Member of SIF (Società Italiana di Fisica);

Since 2019: Delegate for e-learning and EDUOPENplatform for University of Catania;

Since 2020: Member of the Editorial Board of the scientific Journal ENTROPY;

Since 2020: Responsible for DFA of the Piano Nazionale Lauree Scientifiche - Fisica (PLS-POT); 

Since 2022: Member of the Editorial Board of the scientific Journal FRONTIERS IN PHYSICS.

September 2022: Winner of Ig-Nobel prize for Economics, again with Andrea Rapisarda and with Alessio Emanuele Biondo.

Research Interests .
Statistical mechanics; dynamics and thermodynamics of systems with long-range interactions; complex systems; phase transitions and critical phenomena; self-organized criticality; glassy systems; chaos and nonlinear dynamics; fractals; turbulence; plasma physics; ether-drift experiments and void structure; synchronization in many-body systems; complex networks theory applied to physical, biological, social and economic systems; numerical simulations; agents- based simulations; optimization methods, natural computation and machine learning, with applications to management engineering, infrastructure (with particular reference to energy distribution and seismic risk), transport networks, sustainability and climate change.

Bibliometric Indicators

H-Index: 29 (Scopus, May 2024) Citazioni: 2741 (Scopus, May 2024)

Web Site: http://www.pluchino.it

Referee of many International Journals, among which: PLOS ONE, Physical Review E, Chaos, International Journal of Modern Physics C, Physica A, Journal of Statistical Physics, Europhysics Letters, Chaos, Entropy, Eur. Phys. Journal B, Journal of Artificial Societies and Social Simulations (JASSS)

Attended Conferences and Seminars: http://www.pluchino.it/NUOVO-SITO-2019/PREVIOUS_EVENTS.html

Books and other writings: http://www.pluchino.it/NUOVO-SITO-2019/BOOKS_ET_AL.html

VIEW THE PUBLICATIONS
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VIEW THE COURSES FROM THE A.Y. 2022/2023 TO THE PRESENT

Academic Year 2021/2022

Academic Year 2020/2021

Academic Year 2019/2020

Academic Year 2018/2019

Academic Year 2017/2018

Academic Year 2016/2017

Academic Year 2015/2016

Research Interests:  Complex systems and agents-based simulations; Standard and generalized statistical mechanics; Dynamics and thermodynamics of systems with long-range interactions; Phase transitions and critical phenomena; Complex networks theory applied to physical, biological, social and economic systems; Self-organized criticality; Chaos and nonlinear dynamics; Synchronization in many-body systems; Bioinspired optimization algoritms and numerical simulations; Ether-drift experiments and void structure.