Fields Medal....Mathematician's Nobel Prize...ever heard this name !!

Posted by Unknown on Nov 17, 2008

In Brief : The only two times I heard about it are ....

(1) when Grigori Perelman refused it in 2006 and
(2) while watching the movie "The Goodwill Hunting".
The Fields Medal is widely viewed as the top honor a mathematician can receive.
It comes with a monetary award, which in 2006 was C$15,000 (US$15,000 or €10,000).
Founded at the behest of Canadian mathematician John Charles Fields, the medal was first
awarded in 1936, to Finnish mathematician Lars Ahlfors and American mathematician Jesse
Douglas and has been regularly awarded since 1950.
Its purpose is to give recognition and support to younger mathematical researchers who have
made major contributions
The International Union has awarded its 2006 prizes on August 22, 2006 during the Opening
Ceremony of the International Congress of Mathematicians in Madrid, Spain.
The next prizes will be awarded during the opening ceremony of ICM 2010 in Hyderabad, India on August 19, 2010.
In 2006, Grigori Perelman, credited with proving the Poincaré conjecture, refused his Fields
Medal and did not attend the congress. More...
IMU Prizes are awarded every four years at the Opening Ceremony of the International Congress of Mathematicians (ICM).
The Fields Medal recognizes outstanding mathematical achievement.
The Rolf Nevanlinna Prize honors distinguished achievements in mathematical aspects of information science.
The Carl Friedrich Gauss Prize is awarded for outstanding mathematical contributions that have found significant applications outside of mathematics.