Ibrahim Umar (physicist)

Ibrahim Khalil Umar (died 2023) was a Nigerian scientist and university administrator. He was vice-chancellor of Bayero University, Kano, Nigeria from 1979 to 1986. Quotes Well, I suppose it was because I found it interesting. We had a good background in sciences at Barewa College, so I decided to go into science subjects, particularly Physics. I was amazed at what was involved in learning Physics. It was very attractive to me because of what it explains, what one learns about the universe, and so on. So I just felt I could do it, and I decided to do it. In some cases, the way people are brought into these subjects gives them the impression that they are difficult. But if one is interested in a particular subject, one takes all necessary steps to ensure that one learns it very well. Let me also say that nature has a role to play – how the person was born, the nature of his brain and what he was endowed with. And that is beyond anybody’s control. But certainly, nature makes a difference in the way people understand things. If everybody was able to do the same thing in every field, then you wouldn’t have a society where things are working and people are contributing to the lives of others. So the role of nature is very important in this respect. However, interest is also very important. My advice to them is that they should not be scared of the subjects, especially if they are interested. If they have good teachers and determination, they would excel in these two subjects without difficulty. Well, at that time the teachers in Physics and Mathematics were British because it was before independence and we were under the British government. There is no doubt that bad teachers can discourage many young people from studying particular subjects. But with good teachers, such students can easily get acquainted with the principles of learning those subjects and making good success. To be honest with you, I didn’t find it different from a normal work. I worked with my colleagues and there was no problem at all. The white men and I were concerned about teaching our subjects. We worked as a team. At the departmental meetings we discussed what we would do and how to do it. We shared ideas. One’s nationality didn’t make any difference. External links Category:Scientists from Nigeria Category:Living people Category:2023 deaths