Stellenbosch University scholar bags medal as best computer science student at SU
Emil van der Walt made history when he was awarded the Van der Walt medal for the best third year student in Computer Science at Stellenbosch University (SU) in 2022 – a medal that was instituted in memory of his grandfather Prof. Andries van der Walt in 2010.
Prof. Van der Walt was a mathematician of note and played a major role in the early 2000s in establishing computer science as research field at SU, currently one of the best theoretical computer science research environments in the country, mainly concentrating on Automata Theory. Automata Theory deals with abstract machines, which are the mathematical models for all forms of computation, including “real world” computers.
Prof. Van der Walt’s widow, Mrs Nettie van der Walt, was there to make the award to her grandson in person. Since the inception of the medal in 2010, Mrs Van der Walt has been attending each of the award ceremonies in person. Emil is currently busy with his BScHonors degree in computer science.
Another special award of the day was made to third year student Jean Weight. He received the award for exceptional research achievements in computer science after solving an open problem in combinatorics. He did the work as a second-year student in Prof. Lynette van Zijl’s class. He is first author of a book chapter titled “A tight upper bound on the length of maximal bordered box repetition-free words” which will be included in Descriptional Complexity of Formal Systems, published by SpringerLink. In July he is off to Potsdam in Germany to present the results at an international conference.
Other top computer science students from 2022 include Ryan Christie (best first year student), Charles de Kock (best first year student runner-up); Iain le Roux (best second year student); Jean Weight (best second year student runner-up); Wicus van der Linden (best third year student runner up and best student in machine learning); Brandan Watling (best honours student); and Lauren Hayward (best honours project).
This year the prizes were generously supported by companies such as BBD Software Development, CyberIM, Impact, Praelexis and Spatial Edge.
Prof. Brink van der Merwe, head of the Computer Science Division, again thanked the companies and their representatives for their continuous support: “We cannot prepare the students adequately for the world of work out there without your involvement,” he emphasized.
More about Prof. Andries Petrus van der Walt
Prof. Andries van der Walt was appointed at Stellenbosch University in the Department of Mathematics in 1978. He had a positive influence on research activities in algebra, especially the theory of rings and near-rings. In 1984 he became the first A-rated researcher in the department. In 2002 he was appointed as Professor in Computer Science, where he introduced new research fields and succeeded in reviving old research topics. For the last seven years of his career, he played a major role in establishing computer science as one of the best theoretical computer science research environments in the country, mainly concentrating on Automata Theory. Automata Theory deals with abstract machines, which are the mathematical models for all forms of computation, including “real world” computers. This field forms the core of the science of computing and is fundamental to all aspects of the discipline. A central theme is the relationship between the time and space that computation requires, and automata theory provides the tools to study this question scientifically.
Prof. Van der Walt obtained his PhD in Mathematics at the former Potchefstroom University for Christian Higher Education (today’s North-West University) in 1963 with Prof. Hendrik Jacobus Schutte as study leader. According to the Mathematics Genealogy Project of the American Mathematical Society, Prof. Van der Walt has ten students and 68 descendants, including Prof. Lynette van Zijl (1997) in SU’s Computer Science Division and Prof. Leon van Wyk (1986), head of SU’s Mathematics Division.