Mohammad Mehdi Zahedi is an Iranian politician and was the former minister of science and technology in Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's first cabinet from 2005 to 2009. He was approved by Iran's parliament with the least number of supporting votes possible. (supporters had only one vote more than opponents). Zahedi got his PhD in Mathematics from Kerman University where he is currently a "full professor". However, his scientific qualification has been questioned widely by Iranian scientific community.http://roozonline.com/01newsstory/016771.shtml Zahedi's profile claims he is a member of New York Academy of Sciences

New York Academy of Sciences

The New York Academy of Sciences is the third oldest scientific society in the United States. An independent, non-profit organization with more than members in 140 countries, the Academy’s mission is to advance understanding of science and technology...

. An investigation taken place by BBC Persian

BBC Persian

BBC Persian is the Persian language radio station and TV operated by the BBC which conveys the latest political, social, economical and sport news relevant to Iran, Afghanistan, and Tajikistan, and the world. Its headquarters are in London, United Kingdom...

 in July 2009 debunked this claim.http://www.bbc.co.uk/persian/iran/2009/07/090722_wkf-zaheid-nyas-membership.shtml

His profile also claims that he was named among the most prominent Mathematicians of the century by American Mathematical Society

American Mathematical Society

The American Mathematical Society is an association of professional mathematicians dedicated to the interests of mathematical research and scholarship, which it does with various publications and conferences as well as annual monetary awards and prizes to mathematicians.The society is one of the...

 for which there is no evidence found on American Mathematical Society

American Mathematical Society

The American Mathematical Society is an association of professional mathematicians dedicated to the interests of mathematical research and scholarship, which it does with various publications and conferences as well as annual monetary awards and prizes to mathematicians.The society is one of the...

 website.

Zahedi has 15 scientific articles in ISI

Institute for Scientific Information

The Institute for Scientific Information was founded by Eugene Garfield in 1960. It was acquired by Thomson Scientific & Healthcare in 1992, became known as Thomson ISI and now is part of the Healthcare & Science business of the multi-billion dollar Thomson Reuters Corporation.ISI offered...

 with very few citations (most of them self citations). He repeatedly called himself "one of the greatest mathematicians of the time".http://roozonline.com/01newsstory/016771.shtmlhttp://www.iran-daily.com/1384/2350/html/index.htmhttp://iranatom.ru/media/pers/iri/gov/zahee.htm With such a minor scientific achievement he was promoted to full professorship in 1999 (when he had only published 11 articles).

Expulsion of university scientists

In 2006, the Ahmadinejad government systematically forced numerous Iranian scientists and University professors to resign or to retire. It has been referred to as a second cultural revolution.http://roozonline.com/01newsstory/016196.shtml The policy has been said to replace current professors with younger ones.http://www.webneveshteha.com/http://www.aftabnews.ir/vdcco4q2boqe0.html Many University professors received letters indicating their early retirement unexpectedly.http://www.aftabnews.ir/vdcdnf0yt509o.html

However many believe that the government's main goal is to replace Iranian scientists with fundamentalists and finally convert the universities into Howza (traditional religious schools).

Despite huge demonstrations and protests of Iranian students, Zahedi appointed several mullahs with no academic degrees as chancellors of several Universities (the most prominent example being that of Tehran University).

Expelling the politically active students

Zahedi has expelled dozens of politically active students and those who were working in internal newspaper of university by refusing to enroll them for the new academic year (Fall 2006) http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2006/09/56e4c029-6911-4629-9daf-4c811280bf64.html. He first denied the existence of such students but recently he said that those students had criminal cases such as robbery and sexual harassment. This made the students very angry and they asked the MPs for his impeachment.

Ignoring scientific merit in appointments

Zahedi's appointments and dismissals at the Science, Research and Technology Ministry were not based on merit. University chancellors had been formerly appointed after consulting university professors. However, the situation changed as Zahedi become Iran's minister of science and the criterion of meritocracy has been ignored.http://www.iran-daily.com/1384/2471/html/national.htm

Zahedi appointed Abbasali Amid Zanjani

Abbasali Amid Zanjani

Ayatollah Abbasali Amid Zanjani was an Iranian politician and cleric. He was the only cleric president of University of Tehran, served from 2005 to 2008. -Early life:...

, a cleric with no academic degree as the chancellor of Tehran University.

External links

• Cleansing in the Name of Retirement
• Zahedi praises himself! (in Persian)
• Threatening human sciences in Iranian Universities (in Persian)
• Commission to Grill Science Minister

Publications

• 1. Zahedi MM, Saeid AB, Borzooei RA, Implicative hyper K-algebras

CZECHOSLOVAK MATHEMATICAL JOURNAL 55 (2): 439-453 2005
Times Cited: 0

• 2. Borzooei RA, Zahedi MM, Fuzzy structures on hyperK-algebras

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF UNCERTAINTY, FUZZINESS AND KNOWLEDGE-BASED SYSTEMS

International Journal of Uncertainty, Fuzziness and Knowledge-Based Systems

The International Journal of Uncertainty, Fuzziness and Knowledge-Based Systems was founded in 1993 and is published bimonthly by World Scientific. It covers research on methodologies for the management of uncertainty...

10 (1): 77-93 FEB 2002
Times Cited: 0

• 3. Ameri R, Zahedi MM, Fuzzy chain complex and fuzzy homotopy

FUZZY SETS AND SYSTEMS 112 (2): 287-297 JUN 1 2000
Times Cited: 0

• 4. Zahedi MM, Hasankhani A, F-polygroups .2.

INFORMATION SCIENCES 89 (3-4): 225-243 MAR 1996
Times Cited: 2

• 5. HadjiAbadi H, Zahedi MM, Some results on fuzzy prime spectrum of a ring

FUZZY SETS AND SYSTEMS 77 (2): 235-240 JAN 29 1996
Times Cited: 0

• 6. ZAHEDI MM, ON FUZZY SEMIPRIMARY IDEALS

INFORMATION SCIENCES 82 (3-4): 257-266 JAN 1995
Times Cited: 0

• 7. ZAHEDI MM, UPPER-CONTINUOUS AND COMPACTLY GENERATED PROPERTIES OF LATTICE OF L-FUZZY MODULES

FUZZY SETS AND SYSTEMS 60 (1): 103-108 NOV 25 1993
Times Cited: 0

• 8. ZAHEDI MM, SOME RESULTS ON L-FUZZY MODULES

FUZZY SETS AND SYSTEMS 55 (3): 355-361 MAY 10 1993
Times Cited: 5

• 9. ZAHEDI MM, A NOTE ON L-FUZZY PRIMARY AND SEMIPRIME IDEALS

FUZZY SETS AND SYSTEMS 51 (2): 243-247 OCT 26 1992
Times Cited: 4

• 10. ZAHEDI MM, ON L-FUZZY RESIDUAL QUOTIENT MODULES AND P-PRIMARY SUBMODULES

FUZZY SETS AND SYSTEMS 51 (3): 333-344 NOV 10 1992
Times Cited: 5

• 11. ZAHEDI MM, SOME RESULTS ON A GALOIS CONNECTION BETWEEN LATTICES OF L-FUZZY IDEALS

JOURNAL OF MATHEMATICAL ANALYSIS AND APPLICATIONS 170 (2): 343-352 NOV 1 1992
Times Cited: 0

• 12. ZAHEDI MM, FUZZY RESEARCH AT KERMAN-UNIVERSITY, IRAN

FUZZY SETS AND SYSTEMS 50 (3): 359-359 SEP 25 1992
Times Cited: 0

• 13. MASHINCHI M, ZAHEDI MM, ON L-FUZZY PRIMARY SUBMODULES

FUZZY SETS AND SYSTEMS 49 (2): 231-236 JUL 27 1992
Times Cited: 7

• 14. ZAHEDI MM, A CHARACTERIZATION OF L-FUZZY PRIME IDEALS

FUZZY SETS AND SYSTEMS 44 (1): 147-160 NOV 5 1991
Times Cited: 7

• 15. MASHINCHI M, ZAHEDI MM, A COUNTEREXAMPLE OF DAS,P.S. PAPER

JOURNAL OF MATHEMATICAL ANALYSIS AND APPLICATIONS 153 (2): 591-592 DEC 1990
Times Cited: 4

• 16. Zahedi, MM, Hasankhani, A, F-polygroups (II),

Information Sciences, v 89, n 3-4, Mar, 1996, p 225-243
Times Cited: 10

• 17. Zahedi, MM, Hasankhani, A, Bolurian,A, On polygroups and fuzzy–subpolygroups,

J. of Fuzzy Math, 1995
Times Cited: 9