Prof. Shabnam Akhtar, mathematics, University of Oregon, will speak to the Cornell mathematics department on Thursday as this year’s winner of the Ruth I. Michler Memorial Prize.
The Ruth I. Michler Memorial Prize is awarded once a year to a woman recently promoted to associate professor or an equivalent position in the mathematical sciences. The Michler Lecture Series invites the winner to speak to faculty members and graduate students.
The prize is provided by the Association for Women in Mathematics, a nonprofit founded in 1971 that encourages women to pursue careers in the mathematical sciences and to promote equal opportunities for women and girls in the field.
Winners of the prize receive a fellowship that allows them to spend a semester conducting research in the Cornell mathematics department. The applicants are provided with $50,000 as a part of the prize, as well as a $3,000 supplemental housing and subsistence stipend.
With this fellowship, Akhtari will pursue her research on classical Diophantine equations, with a focus on index form equations and the structure of rings in algebraic number fields.
Cornell will hold this lecture at 4 p.m. in Malott Hall 532 and is open to the Cornell community. The public can access the talk virtually.