Striking a chord Here’s a puzzle. Imagine you have a circle, and inside the circle is an equilateral triangle – one which touches the circle at each of its corners, so it’s as big as it can be … 24. Nov 2020 | By Katie Steckles | 0 comments
Penrose und die Parkette „Penrose? Das ist doch der mit den Müsterchen“, simste mir meine Tochter. Über die hatte sie nämlich vor vielen Jahren eine Art Seminararbeit in der Schule angefertigt. Was diese geometrischen Formen denn bitte mit den … 11. Nov 2020 | By Christoph Pöppe | 5 comments
Computers and Proof In the final session of the Virtual HLF, as part of a discussion on the topic ‘Where can computer science and mathematics interact fruitfully?’, the conversation turned to the question of proof. In the words … 06. Oct 2020 | By Katie Steckles | 2 comments
Karen Uhlenbeck and Global Analysis – what is a manifold? As part of this year’s HLF, two alumni – Janelle C. Mason and Jaqueline Godoy Mesquita – interviewed 2019 Abel prize winner Karen Uhlenbeck. The first woman to receive the prize, Uhlenbeck talked about her … 02. Oct 2020 | By Katie Steckles | 2 comments
Mirzakhani and Meanders As part of the panel event which took place as part of this year’s HLF on the life and influence of Mayam Mirzakhani, we heard from several people who have found her inspirational. Two of … 30. Sep 2020 | By Katie Steckles | 1 comment
How will scientific collaboration look like post-COVID? We can’t know for sure, but there’s no turning back “Post-COVID is an interesting term,” says Vint Cerf who holds the unique title of Chief Internet Evangelist at Google. “We likely won’t eradicate this virus anytime soon. We might be looking at regular vaccine shots, … 25. Sep 2020 | By Andrei Mihai | 0 comments
Raj Reddy und die technische Lösung des Lockdown-Problems Dabbala Rajagopal “Raj” Reddy hat einen geradezu märchenhaften Aufstieg genommen. Geboren 1937 in einem kleinen Dorf im heutigen indischen Bundesstaat Andhra Pradesh, arbeitete er nach seinem Studium für einige Jahre bei IBM in Australien und … 25. Sep 2020 | By Christoph Pöppe | 37 comments
Applying Mathematics and Computer Science to Everyday Life – Anecdotes from Donald Knuth and Robert Tarjan On day two of the Virtual Heidelberg Laureate Forum (HLF) 2020, Robert Endre Tarjan and Donald Ervin Knuth engaged in a freewheeling conversation about mathematics, computer science, and art. Donald Knuth was the 1974 ACM … 25. Sep 2020 | By Khari Douglas | 0 comments
Deep connections As part of Monday’s session of Interviews with Recent Laureates, maths writer Alex Bellos interviewed this year’s Abel Prize winners, Hillel Furstenburg and Gregory Margulis. The conversation covered many aspects of their work and the … 24. Sep 2020 | By Katie Steckles | 4 comments
Digital health is already an important Hot Topic, but it’s still a work in progress When Shwetak Patel proposed ‘Digital Health’ as a Hot Topic for the HLF, he had no idea a pandemic was coming. None of us did. But Patel rightly predicted that the importance of digital health … 24. Sep 2020 | By Andrei Mihai | 0 comments
