Qiuming Cheng - Biography#

Qiuming Cheng is a professor and the founding director of the State Key Lab of Geological Processes and Mineral Resources (China University of Geosciences).

Qiuming Cheng obtained his PhD in Earth Science at the University of Ottawa. His doctoral dissertation was awarded the university’s best dissertation for 1994. He spent a year as PDF at the Geological Survey of Canada and soon become a professor with cross appointments in the Dept. of Earth and Space Science and Engineering, and Dept. of Geography at York University, Toronto. Professor Cheng was promoted to associate professor and full professor in fast track mode in 1997 and 2002, respectively. He became a York professor emeritus in 2016.

Professor Cheng’s research focuses on the development and application of modern mathematical geocomplexity theory and GIS methods for modeling nonlinear geo-processes and for the quantitative prediction of mineral resources.

He has authored or co-authored more than 300 refereed journal papers and 20 book chapters and delivered over 100 invited keynote or plenary presentations.

Applications of the methods he has developed have led to several discoveries of new mineral deposits in China and worldwide. Professor Cheng has received several prestigious awards including the Krumbein Medal, the highest award given by the International Association for Mathematical Geosciences (2008) and the National Science and Technology Progress Award awarded by the Chinese Government (2013).

Professor Cheng has served as associate editor for Computers & Geosciences and the Journal of Exploration Geochemistry. He has served as President of the International Association for Mathematical Geosciences (IAMG) (2012-2016), President of the International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS) (2016-2020) and member of the Committee of Science Planning of International Science Council (ISC) (2019-2021).