Jean Maruani

Biography:

Jean Maruani was born on the 28th of December 1937 in Tunis to a middle-class Sephardic family. He makes polyvalent studies in Paris, collaborates with the CEA, the Pasteur Institute, the LCIE, and gets a Doctorat ès-Sciences Physiques at Sorbonne in 1966 under the supervision of Pr Roland Lefebvre (Jury chaired by Pr Alfred Kastler). Then he takes a two-year leave to Charles McDowell’s group at the Depart-ment of Chemistry of UBC (Vancouver, Canada). In 1968 he gets a permanent position at the CMOA of CNRS directed Pr Raymond Daudel.

Jean Maruani has been teaching engineering students at UBC and teaching students at Sorbonne. He has published about 150 papers, mostly theoretical but also experimental, on the Structure and Dynamics of Molecular Systems, especially in Magnetic Resonance and Photoelectron Spectroscopy. He has solved a number of pending problems and introduced novel concepts for non-rigid and approximate symmetries. Later he got involved in fundamental problems related to the Dirac electron properties and also designed a quantum theory of biological evolution aimed at reconciling determinist and finalist viewpoints. He has co-organized about 30 scientific meetings, co-edited about 50 volumes and founded a scientific journal and book series. He has created the CMOA Prize and Medal, respectively, for junior and senior scientists: https://lcpmr.cnrs.fr/content/qscp-quantum-systems-chemistry-physics-and-biology.

Jean Maruani has a Doctorate Honoris Causa from the University of Sofia, a Golden Medal from the City of Paris, and he is Chevalier des Palmes Académiques and Corresponding Member of the European Academy. Although formally retired since 2005, he is actively involved in organizing a QSCP meeting every year in a different city of the world. He also gives talks on philosophical issues and is engaged in classical singing. In February 1969, he has married composer and pianist Marja Rantanen, from Turku (Finland): https://www.marja-rantanen.com/. They have 3 children and 6 grand-children.