[e-Magazine] Prof. Dr. Nguyen Huu Tang, a lifetime devoted to science

Professor, Doctor of Science Nguyen Huu Tang, former Deputy Head of the Central Committee for Science and Education, former Vice President of the Vietnam Union of Science and Technology Associations, a leading theoretical physicist, a dedicated science manager passed away in the early morning of June 22, 2025, at the age of 89. His passing left behind endless sorrow for the scientific community and generations of students and colleagues.

Prof. Dr. Nguyen Huu Tang was born on June 21, 1937, in Yen Thuong commune, Gia Lam district, Hanoi city, in a Confucian family. His father was a teacher. Since childhood, Prof. Dr. Nguyen Huu Tang was instilled by his father with a love for knowledge and a seriousness in studying and working.

After graduating from high school, Professor Nguyen Huu Tang passed the entrance exam to Hanoi University of Science and Technology. With excellent academic achievements, after graduating from university in 1957, Professor Nguyen Huu Tang became a lecturer at the school. After that, he was sent to do his doctoral thesis, then his doctorate of science at Lomonosov Moscow State University.

Returning to the country, holding the responsibility of Deputy Head of the Central Committee for Science and Education, Prof. Dr. Nguyen Huu Tang participated in the first Vice Chairman of the Scientific Council of the Party Committees until his retirement. He laid the foundation and made an important contribution to promoting scientific research in the Party Committees as a basis for consulting and proposing strategies for the Party.

He has guided many doctoral students to successfully defend their theses. In particular, on the basis of successfully guiding doctoral students, he initiated, laid the foundation and formed a new method in theoretical physics, which is the "statistical moment method", and developed it into a major school in Physics.

Returning home with a prestigious Doctor of Science degree and a new direction in hand, Professor Nguyen Huu Tang's greatest aspiration is to devote his entire career to scientific research.

But with the responsibility and exemplary spirit of an excellent party member (he was admitted to the Party in 1968), he followed the organization's assignment. From a theoretical physicist, he entered the field of science and education management, taking on important responsibilities at the Central Science and Education Committee.

For more than 20 years, through many positions, he has used his logical, clear thinking and strategic vision of a scientist to serve the Party's staff work.

One of his fundamental contributions was his role as Vice Chairman of the first Party Committees' Scientific Council. He made an important contribution to promoting scientific research activities within the Party's policy-making bodies, turning science into a solid basis for strategic decisions.

Prof. Dr. Nguyen Huu Tang has chaired and participated in chairing 2 independent state-level scientific projects on intellectuals and children, along with many excellent ministerial-level projects. He participated in editing the first set of textbooks on General Physics for technical universities and reference books.

His years as a manager did not extinguish the fire of science in him. It only transformed into greater concerns for the fate of science in the country. He was always concerned with the question: How can science and technology truly become the top national policy, the driving force for development? According to him, the key lies in the role of the "organizer", a conductor capable of connecting three houses: scientists, the state and businesses.

He proposed that there should be a Deputy Prime Minister in charge of this role, with enough power to remove mechanisms, promote the technology market and even "force businesses to innovate technology".

With the view that "scientific achievements have no borders but technological achievements do", he emphasized the urgency of promoting "endogenous capacity" and creating domestic technological inventions. With limited resources, he said that Vietnam cannot spread itself out but must "narrow down the priority direction of science and technology development further". These ideas still hold true today.

From 2005 to 2010, he held the position of Vice President and Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of the Vietnam Union of Science and Technology Associations. His biggest concern was still the intellectuals.

Understanding the difficulties that he and his colleagues had experienced, he constantly spoke out, arguing that there should be better policies for intellectuals. He specified three groups that needed special attention: policies for older intellectuals with merit; policies for talented intellectuals, especially young ones; and policies for intellectuals from ethnic minorities.

"These policies are not only effective for the above subjects but are a source of encouragement for the intellectual community in general," he shared with deep belief.

With over 55 years of Party membership and nearly 90 years of life, Professor, Doctor of Science Nguyen Huu Tang has always been the embodiment of the communist spirit and the character of a true Confucian scholar.

Colleagues and later generations remember him as a shining example of a leader who was "honest, straightforward, had independent views, dared to propose new ideas, dared to defend what was right, and criticized what was wrong".

He was a strict teacher but also a "sincere, generous, trustworthy brother", a spiritual support, a bond, and inspiration for many generations of cadres and scientists.

Despite holding important positions and being awarded many noble medals, he still maintained a pure, simple, and approachable lifestyle. The image of a professor with silver hair, speaking softly, careful in every word but resolute in thinking has been imprinted in the minds of many people.