Professor Ivan Gutman stands as a distinguished scholar whose dual expertise in chemistry and mathematics has profoundly shaped theoretical approaches in both disciplines. He earned his PhD in Chemical Sciences from the University of Zagreb in 1973, followed by a second doctorate in Mathematics from the University of Belgrade in 1981, establishing his unique interdisciplinary foundation. From 1977 to 2012, he served on the faculty of the University of Kragujevac's Department of Chemical Sciences, rising to Full Professor in 1984 and becoming Professor Emeritus upon his retirement in 2012. His academic journey began with research at the Ruđer Bošković Institute in Zagreb from 1971 to 1977, where he developed his early expertise in theoretical organic chemistry under the supervision of Nenad Trinajstić.
Professor Gutman is internationally renowned for introducing the concept of graph energy, a groundbreaking mathematical construct originating from theoretical chemistry that has since become fundamental in spectral graph theory. His pioneering work on topological properties of conjugated hydrocarbons, documented in his doctoral research, established new methodological frameworks for understanding molecular structures through mathematical modeling. The Mathematical Methods in Chemistry seminar he organized at the University of Kragujevac, which ran continuously from 1981 to 2006 with over 1,000 sessions, became a significant hub for interdisciplinary research collaboration across Eastern Europe. His contributions to chemical graph theory, particularly in developing topological descriptors, have provided essential tools for predicting molecular properties and behaviors without requiring complex quantum mechanical calculations.
As a Full Member of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts since 1997 and a member of Academia Europaea since 2012, Professor Gutman has played a pivotal role in shaping scientific discourse at the highest institutional levels. He has received numerous prestigious honors including the Medal of the Serbian Chemical Society for outstanding contribution to science in 2001 and the Award of the Ministry of Science of Serbia for best scientific monograph in 2010. His editorial leadership across multiple journals and book series has helped define publication standards in mathematical chemistry and related fields. Even in his emeritus status, Professor Gutman continues to influence the scientific community through his theoretical contributions and remains an active intellectual force in the interdisciplinary space between chemistry and mathematics.
