Dr. Abdel Nasser Tawfiq, son of the Egyptian village, who succeeded in ending a historical dispute between relativity and quantumism (Al Jazeera)

Like a Sufi who chose to be alone to devote himself to dhikr, supplication, and prayers, the professor of theoretical physics, Abdel Nasser Tawfiq, nicknamed “Einstein of the Century,” chose to devote himself to the science of physics, which he had fallen in love with since his high school years, to create a theory that was applauded by the specialists after it ended the dispute between general and quantum relativity.

But its owner, who chose to continue research and science away from the spotlight, remained silent, leaving others to talk about it.

It seems that his disciples, young researchers, were saddened by his absence from the media presence, despite the value and importance of his research, so they launched a group on Facebook under the title “The Einstein Reconciliation of the Century” to promote his works, including this pioneering theory, so that group drew our attention and pushed us to search for this man who left a mark that pays attention. Researchers have to spend their time summarizing and promoting his research.

I asked one of them, Peter Iskander, a researcher at Paris Dauphine University in France, for a way to communicate with Dr. Tawfiq to conduct a press interview with him. I felt very happy with him, as if I was asking to conduct a dialogue with him personally, which increased my curiosity to talk to this man who seemed to have left no trace. Scientifically only among his disciples, young researchers, but he also left a human and personal impact.

I did not waste much time. I contacted him immediately after obtaining the means of communication, and he granted me an appointment two weeks later. This long period increased my curiosity and passion for this meeting, which lasted for an hour and a half, during which we moved between science and faith, and I said to myself at its conclusion, “Now I know why he loves him.” “Iskander and his fellow young researchers.” The following is the text of the dialogue.

Dr. Abdel Nasser Tawfiq (left) during his interview with Al Jazeera Net correspondent (Al Jazeera)

  • If we first wanted to summarize the long pages of your CV in a few lines, what would you say?

(A deep sigh in preparation for a long answer)... My name is Abdel Nasser Mahmoud Tawfiq, from a village called “Bani Ammar” in Sohag Governorate, southern Egypt. It is said that my family has roots that extend back to Jaafar bin Abi Talib, so you can say that I belong to a religious family. But that did not push me to study Sharia and religious sciences. I fell in love with natural sciences since middle school, thanks to my science teacher at school.

My attachment to science, specifically physics, increased during secondary school, so the decision after I obtained a high school diploma with a high grade that would qualify me to join the Faculty of Medicine, was to join the Faculty of Science at Assiut University (southern Egypt). This desire was increased by the emergence of the Egyptian scientist Farouk El-Baz in this regard. the time.

However, although Al-Baz’s rise to fame came from the geology major, my decision when I joined college was to major in physics. Therefore, despite obtaining the highest grades in all science subjects in the first year of college, I chose to major in physics, despite the attempts of the college dean at the time - She was a chemistry major - to dissuade me from this desire.

I continued my years of study at the college with distinction, was appointed as a teaching assistant, and obtained a master’s degree from Assiut University. Then I traveled to Germany to obtain my doctorate. After obtaining it, I spent a long period there as a professor, moved between more than one university, and obtained German citizenship.

Because the decision to continue abroad was not present to me, I preferred for years to return to my homeland before I got old, so that I could contribute to building a scientific school in the field of theoretical physics.

After returning, I worked at Assiut University, but I did not like the situation there, so I resigned from there, and moved to the Modern University of Science and Technology (a private university), where I founded the Egyptian Center for Theoretical Physics, and now I have settled in the Future University (a private university). While I moved between different universities, I was always searching for “scientific research.” Whenever there is a place that provides suitable conditions for this purpose and appropriate funding for it, this is my homeland.

Dr. Abdel Nasser Tawfiq announced his theory of unifying relativity and quantum science in more than one scientific event (Al Jazeera)

Theoretical physics.. a small share of the funding pie

  • Despite your significant effort in trying to build a scientific school in theoretical physics, it seems to me as if it is a “non-mass” specialty, and only those who specialize in it realize the value of its research and theories. To the point that we, as scientific journalists, often avoid writing about it due to its extreme difficulty. Is the reason that you are negligent in bringing your specialty closer to the general public?

(The calm, distinctive facial features of Dr. Tawfiq disappear to give way to excited features)... We are not negligent, but what happened is that during the past fifty years, and due to the tyranny of matter, applied sciences devoured the lion’s share of the scientific research funding cake, and perhaps this contributed to the failure to complete research. A strong theory creates a public audience for this discipline, whose researchers - such as Albert Einstein - were the elite of the elite from the beginning of the last century until 1950.

I am completely confident that if appropriate funding were available for this specialty, and it was presented to the public in a simple way, its researchers would become the stars of society, because it is a specialty that lays the foundation on which other sciences are built, and the evidence for this is the British scientist Stephen Hawking - who was one of the pioneers of the specialty until his death on March 14. March 2018 - When he occasionally came up with new theories, his speech would arouse public interest.

  • Aside from Stephen Hawking, because perhaps his shocking views are what attracted attention, but frankly I seek every excuse for the funding bodies, as it is natural for them to give their funding to research that will have an applied impact.. Does theoretical physics really not have any applied impact?

(His calm features disappear more and more)... On the contrary, it is the foundation on which all applied sciences are built. Therefore, international funding agencies for scientific research, and I am a member of some of them, are keen to give it 10% of their funding compared to 90% for other applied sciences, and to ensure that The continuation of this percentage - although it is small and does not meet our ambitions - means that the funding agencies are well aware that the creativity of researchers in this field must be maintained, even if it does not have direct applications.

Dr. Abdel Nasser Tawfiq (center) next to the nucleotron collider at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research in Dubna, north of Moscow (Al Jazeera)

Invention of the Web and GPS

  • Let me stop at your last sentence, “Even if it has no direct applications,” does this mean that your research has applications indirectly?

Exactly, the invention of the Internet, on which communication in modern civilization is based, came from the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), which is located on the border between Switzerland and France, and is considered the largest laboratory in the world for studying particle physics, within which the global “Web” network was invented, which is An essential component of the Internet, it was created by the British scientist Sir Tim Berners-Lee in 1989, when he developed the first website and web browser to meet the challenges of exchanging information between researchers from different locations within the organization, and in 1990 the first website was created at CRN. , released in 1991, marked the beginning of the general availability of the World Wide Web.

In addition, Albert Einstein himself was not an engineer or inventor, but he was a theoretical scientist, and before him Isaac Newton, who was more theoretically inclined than Einstein, but the theories that the two developed were upon which modern civilization was based, so the invention of the “GPS” that you used To reach this place where we meet now is an indirect application of Einstein's theory of relativity.

  • How was the GPS system based on the theory of relativity?

(He asks for a piece of paper from the file I am holding, and takes up his pen to explain the relationship between the theory of relativity and GPS.) “General relativity” states that gravity affects space-time (space-time includes the three spatial dimensions of length, width, and height, in addition to the fourth dimension of time). In stronger gravitational fields, time passes more slowly compared to weaker fields, and because of the Earth's gravitational field, time passes a little slower on the Earth's surface, compared to GPS satellites in orbit.

According to the special theory of relativity, time is not absolute, but depends on the relative motion of observers. Objects moving at different speeds experience time differently. Time passes more slowly for a fast-moving object than for a stationary object. GPS satellites move "At very high speeds (about 14,000 kilometers per hour, or 9,000 miles per hour), and according to the special theory of relativity, the clocks on these satellites operate at a slightly different rate than the clocks on the Earth's surface. According to general relativity, the gravitational field is at The altitude of GPS satellites is lower than on Earth, and this causes clocks on satellites to run slightly faster than clocks on Earth.

The combination of these effects means that clocks on GPS satellites suffer from time dilation compared to clocks on Earth, and if not corrected, this difference in timekeeping can lead to large errors in the system's accuracy on the order of kilometers. So engineers working on GPS must take into account the effects of special relativity due to the satellite's speed, and general relativity due to the weaker gravitational field at the satellite's altitudes.

Scientific construction base for different specializations

  • Of course this is a positive effect of my theory of relativity, but there are negative effects, and here I mean the production of the atomic bomb.

I agree with you. Einstein's most famous equation, which says, "Energy equals mass, multiplied by the speed of light squared," is the basis on which the atomic bomb was built. This equation indicates that a small amount of mass can be converted into a large amount of energy.

From these two examples, whether GPS or the atomic bomb, the important role of theoretical physics is clear, as it sets the basis upon which scientific construction is based in the various disciplines of engineering, chemistry, materials science, and others.

  • I believe that your clarification of this relationship between theoretical physics and other sciences explains why the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2023 was given to scientists who developed the production of very short light pulses that are measured in “attoseconds,” while in Chemistry it was awarded to the Egyptian scientist Ahmed Zewail in 1999 for his success in photographing... Chemical reaction between atoms and molecules in femtosecond time?

(A wide smile appears on his face)... Thank you for this illustrative example, as it is the best confirmation of the value of theoretical physics. Zewail won the award in chemistry for his success in photographing chemical reactions in the “femtosecond” time. He was able to do this with the help of a laser, which is a physics work. The camera that was used to photograph using a laser is a work of engineering, so if there had not been development in the laser and the cameras that use it, Zewail would not have been able to achieve his breakthrough that won him the Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

But the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2023 went to scientists who developed lasers at speeds higher than a femtosecond, and others, like Zewail, may receive a prize in Chemistry if they succeed in employing this advanced laser in new applications. This confirms once again that the theory lays the foundation for any development.

  • Why did you say "again"? Does this mean that there are other examples that you would like to present in this context?

Of course there are. In 2015, scientists succeeded in measuring the frequencies associated with “gravitational waves.” These waves were predicted by Einstein about 100 years ago and were rejected by the scientific community at the time. However, after devices became available capable of measuring the frequencies associated with these waves, it was proven that the theory.

Two reasons for the lack of funding

  • Since it is important science, and time proves its importance as I explained in the last example, why don't donors give it more funding? Are you, as researchers, unable to market your research production and give it a sufficient audience?  

There are two important points to answer your question; The first is that there is a predominance of applied research that attracts funding. This research brings in money when it is transformed into products, so funding agencies and companies grant it generous funding. The other point is that, since 1950, there has been no strong theoretical research that creates a public opinion for this science, with the exception of the theory of the “Higgs particle” in 2012, which is a theory that the British scientist, Nobel laureate in physics 2013, Peter Higgs, had developed in 1964, and it talks about mechanics. Which makes a small particle take on mass, and this theory was not proven laboratoryly until 2012 when there were tools to prove it. Perhaps if this proof of the theory had occurred in the 1970s, the Higgs would have gained widespread fame.

  • The Higgs may be known to specialists, but Einstein and his theory of relativity are known to the general public. So why did people in the past interact with Einstein and do we not interact in this era with the Higgs and his theory?

Einstein is incomparable.

  • I know his value, but my question is: Did people understand what he was saying at the time and therefore interacted with him?

Einstein's theory is not difficult. It is a set of assumptions upon which a certain building was built. Surprisingly, this building was sound and no one has yet been able to discover any defect in it. This theory (general relativity) changed our view of our place in the universe. In 1915, we did not know About the universe except the solar system, and two centuries before that there was controversy: Is the sun the center of the universe or not? Then Einstein came to take us to further horizons to imagine the universe beyond the solar system as if it were a message sent by God from the sky across this world through a simple equation in its form, but it is profound. In its content.

General relativity defies time

  • Can you simplify this equation for me?

(He again asks for a sheet of paper from my notebook to write a drawing on it that explains the equation)... As you can see, the left side of the equation represents the geometry of space-time, while the right side represents the content of matter and energy, and according to this equation, when a change occurs in matter, the geometry of space-time changes. If we say For example, the Moon is attracted to the Earth. According to this equation, the Moon’s mass distorts the fabric of the universe around the Earth.

Thanks to this theory (general relativity), we have become more understanding of the universe around us. As for the other theory, which is (special relativity), on the basis of which the “atomic bomb” was invented, it is concerned with the relationship between space and time in the absence of the gravitational forces characteristic of the other theory.

  • I imagine that "general relativity" is the most popular among the masses...isn't it?

Exactly, because this theory made predictions, and these predictions were later proven, and with each proof they gained great momentum and fame, and among the predictions of that theory that Einstein mentioned in 1916, is that light can travel in curved paths, and this means that the gravitational field of a massive body such as... A star or galaxy can bend the path of light as it passes through this field, a phenomenon he called “gravitational lensing.” It was proven in 1919 during a solar eclipse that Africa witnessed. During an eclipse, sunlight is blocked, and stars close to the sun become visible in the eclipse. Dark skies. According to Einstein's theory, the sun's gravitational field should bend the light emanating from these stars as it passes near the sun, which was actually observed, so that what Einstein mentioned was confirmed three years later.

Gravitational waves... Einstein's genius

  • What do you think is the secret behind this genius?

This man was given by God an unprecedented mental ability to conduct laboratory tests in his mind. While others needed to go to the laboratories to conduct their experiments, Einstein’s mind was his laboratory. This is an unprecedented genius that was confirmed day after day. The last of these confirmations was in 2015 when “gravitational waves” were proven. Which he talked about about 100 years ago.

  • What is meant by gravitational waves?

This theory speaks about the fact that massive objects, when they accelerate, produce waves in the fabric of space-time known as gravitational waves. These waves spread at the speed of light and carry information about the movement of massive objects. When Einstein accomplished this theory and put it in a study that was sent to one of the periodicals, it refused to publish it, and it was considered by One of the arbitrators considered it "nonsense", but this nonsense was proven to be true in 2015 by the Laser Gravitational Wave Observatory "LIGO" in America, where they discovered that the merger of two black holes located about 1.3 billion light-years away, caused a tremor in the universe that produced simple frequencies that could be measured. On Earth, this was support for Einstein's theory.

  • If the merger of two black holes about 1.3 billion light-years away caused this effect on Earth, does this not support the theory of Dutch earthquake forecaster Frank Hoogrebits, who says that the alignment of the planets can have an effect on Earth, leading to earthquakes?

(Nodding in disapproval)... The vibrations caused by this merger were very small and insignificant and required very precise devices to monitor them. So how can we imagine that other events resulting from objects and planets smaller in size than those black holes could cause an impact on the Earth? In one word, there are no objects. Celestial bodies have a stronger influence on the Earth than the Moon’s influence on it, an effect known as “tides,” where the gravitational interaction between the Moon and the Earth causes the sea level to rise and fall in a periodic pattern, creating what we observe in the form of tides, so if there are objects Celestial objects that can be linked to the movement of the Earth and the occurrence of earthquakes, so it would be better to be the moon.

Reconciliation of two theories in science

  • We move from Einstein and his theory of relativity to your theory of “quantized general relativity,” which made some researchers call you “the Einstein of the century.” What is that theory and what did you want to communicate through it? 

Let us first talk about the difference between general relativity and quantum theory, so that we know why I wanted to reconcile them into one theory, which is “quantized general relativity.”

General relativity is what talks about the large universe, and it sees that massive objects, such as planets and stars, bend the fabric of space-time around them, and then the objects move along curved paths dictated by this curvature, and what we consider gravity is the movement of objects affected by the curvature of space-time.

While quantum theory is a basic theory in physics that describes the behavior of matter and energy on very small scales, such as the scale of atoms and subatomic particles, one of the principles of this theory is what is known as “quantum entanglement,” which means that particles can be entangled, as the properties of one particle are linked to the properties of another particle. Another, even if they are far apart.

Surprisingly, both theories have applications and time has proven the accuracy of each of them. General relativity is the basis for cosmic discoveries, and quantum theory is the basis on which modern chemistry, chemical reactions, pharmaceutical industries, and the electronic device revolution are based.

However, despite this, the followers of these two theories did not agree. The supporters of the quantum theory believe that it is the most correct in explaining nature, and the supporters of general relativity claim that their theory is the most correct. Einstein recorded objections to the quantum theory based on his belief in deterministic truth, and he expressed his discomfort with the probabilistic nature of the quantum theory, and he was He is particularly critical of the concept of "spooky action at a distance" now known as "quantum entanglement", and famously said "God does not play dice with the universe."

The question that preoccupied the research community was: If the two theories contradict each other, why have time proven that both of them are correct? This question led scientists to try to reconcile the two, including the German Max Born, who won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1954, but he was unsuccessful. However, I succeeded in achieving this reconciliation through a theory I called “quantized general relativity,” and I announced it in more than one research study published in Specialized periodicals in theoretical physics.

  • How did you achieve the consensus that Max Born failed to achieve?

I found compatibility between the two theories because there is knowledge that was formed after Max Born that I was able to gain familiarity with, because my mind is not closed to a specific specialty. I am open to everything that is published and written about general and quantum relativity and the mathematical equations of the two theories, which is like the “screwdriver” with which we work, and it led me Understanding the modifications that have occurred over the past sixty years in general relativity, including the introduction of new knowledge, as well as the modifications that have been made in quantum theory. To create compatibility between the two.

  • What is the basis on which this consensus is built?

The main difference between the two theories is that quantum theory did not address the effects of gravity, and there were others who tried to introduce gravity into it. I built on what they had reached and introduced my own modified quantum theory, which includes the effects of gravity, into general relativity, so I obtained a theory of general relativity. You can understand quantum, and I called it "quantized general relativity."

(And he asks again for a piece of paper from my notebook to draw a hierarchical structure on it, then he explains)... What I made is a change in general relativity that starts from the base, where I introduced quantitative components to the base, so that these components appear with me on every floor, until I have an integrated building, which is... A mathematical equation that combines general relativity and quantum relativity.

  • How will this change science?

I could deceive you and talk about breakthroughs that will happen, but the honest answer is that at the moment we are talking, the certain truth is that the gap between the two theories has disappeared or decreased at the very least, and I do not know what the impact of this will be in the course of science, as huge unexpected changes may occur. Minor changes may occur.

  • Maybe you say that modestly.

Honestly, I don't know.. Einstein himself did not imagine the magnitude of the impact that his theory of general and special relativity would have, and he expressed great dissatisfaction that his theory of "special relativity" was used by the Manhattan Project, led by J. Robert Oppenheimer, to invent the atomic bomb, which is one of the most successful projects in history.

The atomic bomb...the most successful project in history

  • How do you describe it, even though the producer of this project (I mean the atomic bomb) caused the destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan?

(With a smile)... You might consider Oppenheimer a devil, but his success was in turning theoretical work into a product in an extremely record time.

  • Why didn't they seek help from Einstein himself?

Einstein is the scientist who was most closely monitored by American intelligence, and from their study of him, they realized that he was a giant cosmic person who was too large to be led by a single person, so they turned to others, including Oppenheimer, and the truth is that any scientist would have liked to work on this project.

  • If we assumed that you were living in America at this time and were offered to participate in this project, would you have accepted?

(Without hesitation)... I would have accepted out of scientific passion, as this was a huge project at the time, for which all possibilities were available to transform a purely theoretical work into a product.

  • But isn't this considered "bad science" that is harmful and not beneficial?

In the eyes of the scientists who worked on this project, it was a work in the service of humanity, because on the other side there was a crazy person named Hitler who was also seeking to produce the atomic bomb, and to save the world America must arrive before him.

On the other hand, the famous German scientist Werner Karl Heisenberg was also working on Hitler's project, and he also had his justifications, as every scientist had his own world in his mind.

Religion and science.. How does intellectual wandering occur?

  • I understand from this that there are no religious beliefs and values ​​that govern the decisions and trends of the world?

(يشير بإبهامه إعجابا بالسؤال).. دعنا نوضح في البداية أمرا مهما، وهو أن علم الفيزياء يتكلم عن الماضي والحاضر، ففي الماضي يناقش شكل الكون والمجرات وما إلى ذلك، وفي الحاضر يضع الأساس الذي يقود لتكنولوجيا حديثة واختراعات تسهل حياتنا، والدين يتحدث عن الماضي والحاضر والمستقبل الذي يتمثل فيما بعد الموت، وهي غيبيات لا يمكن قياسها، لكننا نؤمن بها.

إذن أنت أمام علم يتقاطع مع الدين في عنصرين هما "الحاضر والماضي"، فإذا لم يكن لديك عقيدة قوية تقوم على أساس أن "الدين مقدس وغير قابل للاختبار، بينما العلم لا يعيش إلا بالاختبار"، و"الدين لا تشك فيه، ولكن العلم يجب أن تشكك وتشك فيه"، فيمكن حينها أن يشرد تفكيرك وتبدأ في الحديث عن العنصر الثالث وهو المستقبل، لذلك فإن كل علماء التخصص في الغرب أصيبوا بهذا الشرود الفكري.

  • وهل نشأتك في صعيد مصر داخل أسرة متدينة كما أخبرتنا في بداية الحوار، وفّرت لك الحماية من الإصابة بهذا الشرود الفكري؟

(يصمت لفترة طويلة بعض الشيء).. بصراحة أصبت بهذا الشرود الفكري في مرحلة من حياتي المهنية، واحتجت لبعض الوقت حتى يحدث عندي التوازن بعد مزيد من القراءات التي شكلت عندي ثقافة دينية، جعلتني أستطيع التفرقة بين ما هو منزل ومقدس وما هو مستحدث، وأستطيع وصف ما هو منزل وما هو مستحدث، والتأطير لهذا وذاك.

  • وكيف حدث هذا الشرود الفكري؟

حدث هذا الشرود الفكري في مرحلة الدراسة الجامعية، مع ظهور التيارات الدينية وقتها، وكان هناك وقتها صراع ديني عنيف حول ذهنية الناس، وكان التدين له علاقة بوجهة نظر رموز التيار الذي ينتمي له الشخص، وفي تلك الفترة حدث لي الشرود الفكري، فجنحت نحو الفكر اليساري، إلى أن استطعت استعادة توازني بعد التعمق في قراءة الفقة، لأخرج من بوتقة الجنوح نحو تيار ديني بعينه، وأصبح لي فهمي الخاص الذي جعلني أشتغل في الفيزياء وأظل مسلما شعائريا وعقائديا في مجتمع علمي أغلب أعضائه من الملحدين.

  • وكيف استطعت التعامل مع هذا المجتمع رغم ما يبدو على مظهرك من سمت ديني؟

ببساطة، عند الحديث في العلم، أبتعد عن تفسير الأمور من منطق ديني، وأتحدث في المشتركات بيني وبينهم، وهي جوانب العلم المادية، فهذا الفصل مهم للغاية، حتى وأنت تكتب بحثا علميا، فمن المحرمات "غير المكتوبة" أن تشير إلى أي قوة خارقة عند تفسيرك لأي ظاهرة.

  • ولكن أينشتاين نفسه تحدث في بعض الأحيان عن القوة الخارقة؟

أينشتاين يفعل ما يحلو له لأنه أينشتاين، لكن بشكل عام كما أخبرتك، فالحديث عن الجوانب المشتركة والابتعاد عن الدين هو السبيل للتعايش مع هذا المجتمع العلمي.

الدكتور عبد الناصر توفيق اكتسب صداقة علماء الغرب بالابتعاد عن تفسير الأمور من منطق ديني والحديث فيما يجمعهم من مشتركات (الجزيرة)

التدين .. والتفكير في أمور لا تقبل التفسير

  • بصراحة، هل التدين يمكن أن يضع عليك قيودا في التفكير تجعلك تتخلف عن أقرانك من أعضاء المجتمع العلمي؟

بالقطع لا، فالتدين لا يمنعني من التفكير في الأمور غير القابلة للتفسير، ولكن الفرق بيني وبين غير المتدين يكون في التعبير، فأنا أعبر بأدب، وهو يخرج عن النص.

  • ولكن الجوائز والتكريمات تذهب في تخصصكم لمن يخرج عن النص، فهل تعبيرك بأدب يمكن أن يحرمك من جوائز عالمية إذا أثبت الزمن صدق نظريتك "النسبية العامة المكممة"؟

Prizes are administered by means of compensation, and I say this despite the fact that I have received many of them, but I am speaking in general terms, and the problem deeper than prizes in my estimation is scientific publishing. Scientific journals are stubborn with researchers coming from countries of the South, and a researcher from countries of the South makes twice as much effort compared to his peers in order to have his research accepted. .

  • You say this despite the fact that your research is the most cited in your field of specialization globally, according to Google Scholar statistics?

I am talking about a general problem, not a personal problem. Thank God, many of my research papers are accepted within one day, and sometimes hours after submitting them, without being presented to referees, because my name has become known and famous in the field of specialization.

From the Google Scholar screen, which shows Dr. Abdel Nasser Tawfiq’s global superiority in the number of cited research (Al Jazeera)

  • What is your advice to other researchers?

I say to them: You have no choice but to "recover", put in more effort, take care in formulating the research, and respond to the inquiries you receive in a sober, scientific manner.

The Sufi and the researcher... common aspects

  • If you have overcome the problem of publishing, does your work at an Egyptian university provide you with a reasonable income comparable to Germany?

I see that the researcher is similar to the Sufi in many matters. The Sufi is satisfied with certain things and does not look at other things, and so is the researcher. If you become a researcher and evaluate everything materially, you will turn into an employee, and then you will lose the passion for knowledge. Then there is “the covering” and “the blessing.” If they exist, God will bless what He has provided, and things will go well.

  • I understand from this that there is room for you to return to Germany?

I do not have a chronic attachment to a place, and so far things are going well in the place where I work, but if conditions change, I can return again, and this depends on the place I am going to, and whether it has the conditions that help me do good scientific research or not.

Source: Al Jazeera