Robin Won Fields; Now A Woman Does
In “Good Will Hunting,” the character played by Robin Williams won the Fields Medal, the Nobel of mathematics. Now, for the the first time, a woman, Stanford’s Maryam Mirzahkani, has been accorded the prize. “This is a great honor. I will be happy if it encourages young female scientists and mathematicians,” Mirzakhani said. “I am sure there will be many more women winning this kind of award in coming years.” Officially known as the International Medal for Outstanding Discoveries in Mathematics, the Fields Medal was presented by the International Mathematical Union today at the International Congress of Mathematicians, held this year in Seoul, South Korea.
