MATHEMATICAL INSTITUTE OF THE HUNGARIAN ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

The Institute was founded by the Hungarian Academy of Sciences in 1949. Its first director was Alfrd Rnyi, who headed the Institute till his early death in 1970. Successive directors were Lszl Fejes Tth (1970-1982), Andras Hajnal (1982-1992), Domokos Szsz (1993-1995) and Gyula O. H. Katona (1996- ). The research staff of the Institute consists of about 70 members, but at any time a considerable part of them (typically 20-30 p.c.) are on leave, fulfilling longer term invitations/temporary positions at various universities or research centers abroad. The following elected members of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences are among the leading scientists of the Institute: Akos Csaszar (topology and real analysis), Imre Csiszar (information theory) Zoltan Furedi(discrete mathematics) Andras Hajnal (discrete mathematics, set theory and topology) Gyula O. H. Katona (discrete mathematics) Peter Major (probability theory) Janos Pintz (number theory) Imre Z. Ruzsa (number theory) Miklos Simonovits (discrete mathematics) Vera T. Sos (discrete mathematics and number theory) Domokos Szasz (dynamical systems and statistical physics) Endre Szemerdi (discrete mathematics and theoretical computer science) Gbor Tusnady (stochastics) The research staff of the Institute forms research teams covering the following research topics: algebra, algebraic geometry, algebraic logic and computer science, approximation theory, differential equations, discrete mathematics, functional analysis, geometry, information theory, mathematical statistics, number theory, probability theory, set theory, statistical physics, topology. The scientific output of the Institute is well certified by the research papers published by its staff in leading international journals. The members of the Institute play an important part in organizing the conferences of the Jnos Bolyai Mathematical Society, the proceedings of which are also well known by the international mathematical community. In 2001 the Institute was granted the title Centre of Excellence of the European Union. Beside the research work another important duty of the Institute is the active support of mathematics teaching at various levels from undergraduate to postgraduate. This is partly done by undertaking teaching duties at various universities of the country, by organizing graduate and postgraduate courses in the topics mentioned above, and by tutoring PhD students. From the academic year 2001/2002 a new PhD program has been launched jointly with Cental European University. The Institute welcomes visiting researchers both at postgraduate and senior levels from Hungary as well as from abroad. Colleagues who wish to pay a short term visit to the Institute in order to establish or promote scientific contacts are also welcome. Library In spite of the financial difficulties, the Institute's library is the biggest library of mathematics in Hungary. It has about 40.000 books and 25.000 volumes of more than 400 periodicals. The supports of the following sponsors are invaluable: OTKA (Budapest), Trinity College (Cambridge, England) A.C.M. (New York) S.I.A.M. (Philadelphia) Soros Foundation (New York). You can search the on-line library database. The building The building is a two-story edifice with an inner yard and has a ground plan of six axes. The entrance gate is situated on the second axis from the West, and the decorative staircase forms an organic whole with the inner areas of the building. Address Alfred Renyi Institute of Mathematics, Hungarian Academy of Sciences Realtanoda utca 13-15, H-1053, Budapest, Hungary Mailing address: POB 127, H-1364 Budapest, Hungary Tel: +36 1 483-8302 Fax: +36 1 483-8333 e-mail: math@renyi.hu How to come to the Institute The Institute is situated in downtown Budapest, at 13-15 Realtanoda St, in the proximity of several underground stations and bus stops. If you take underground line No. 2 (red), get off at Astoria. Walk past the main entrance of Hotel Astoria in Kossuth Lajos St., then take the first side-street on the left, which is Magyar St. Then Reltanoda St. will be the first on the right. Once there, you can't miss the building of the Institute, painted in orange. If you take underground line 3 (blue), get off at Ferenciek tere. Walk out of the tube station and take the exit which is behind you on the left. Then continue straight ahead on the left side of the street, walking past the church and Restaurant Krptia. Reltanoda Street will be the first on the left. If you take trams Nos. 47 or 49, get off at Astoria and continue as above. Buses 7, 7A, 78 stop both at Astoria and at Ferenciek tere; red 7 and 173 only at Ferenciek tere. You can find information on routes and schedules here Public transport In Budapest, there is a great variety of public transport: underground (metro), buses, trams, even trolleys. Passengers taking any of them should use pre-purchased tickets that should be validated at the beginning of the journey (in the underground at the entrance, otherwise on the bus/tram etc.) For more information on schedules, night services or tickets see the page of BKV Rt. (Budapest Transport Ltd.) Prices are constantly rising; as of June 2006, the price of a single ticket (valid for any form of transport for one journey of arbitrary length) is 185 HUF. You can buy blocks of 10 or 20 tickets which are somewhat cheaper than buying just single tickets. There are also monthly passes but they are worth buying only for those staying for at least a month and are regularly using public transport. You can read more about different kinds of tickets and passes here. Taxi In general, when taking a taxi while in Budapest it is better to call or take one belonging to a taxi company (e.g. City Taxi (2 111 111), Taxi 2000 (2 000 000)) Otherwise you should inquire about the fare in advance in order to diminish the risk of an unpleasant surprise. (Also if it's possible, call a taxi by phone instead of flagging one - it's cheaper) Arriving to Budapest by air You will be landing at Budapest Ferihegy airport. From there the easiest and most comfortable way of coming into town is to take an Airport Minibus. This will pick you up along with a few other passengers and will take you to the address you indicate (the name of the hotel usually suffices). You may buy your minibus ticket right off in the baggage reclaim area or in the arrival hall. As of October 2005, the price of a trip is 2300 HUF (ATM's and exchange bureaus are available in the airport). You may order your return trip by phone 1 or 2 days before leaving. (296-8555) The Taxis you see when walking out of the airport (Tourist Taxi) are rather expensive (5200-5900 HUF). It is cheaper to call a taxi company working with fixed rates. Taxi4 (1 4444444) charges 4000 HUF to Pest, 4500 HUF to Buda; Taxi2000 (1 2000000) charges 4100 and 4600 respectively; 6x6 (1 6666666) and BudaTaxi (1 2333333) charge 4300 and 4800. (June 2005 prices) All these companies send you a car within 10 minutes' time. There is also a regular (blue) bus, No 200 leaving roughly every 12-15 minutes, which for a normal Budapest bus ticket (185 HUF) takes you to the end station of underground line No 3. On this bus you can also buy a ticket from the driver. Buses are available till 23:45, but keep in mind that the last underground train leaves at 23:10. Arriving to Budapest by train Trains from abroad usually arrive at Keleti railway station, from where you can take underground line No. 2 and several buses. If you arrive late at night it is better to take a taxi