Our server costs ~$56 per month to run. Please consider donating or becoming a Patron to help keep the site running. Help us gain new members by following us on Twitter and liking our page on Facebook!
Current time: March 29, 2024, 10:31 am

Thread Rating:
  • 0 Vote(s) - 0 Average
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
Mathematical Genius: Who Are Humanity's Current Mathematical Geniuses?
#1
Mathematical Genius: Who Are Humanity's Current Mathematical Geniuses?
I'm curious if anyone knows who today's greatest mathematicians are, or in your opinion, who are humanity's greatest mathematicians?  Do you think that any of them are on par with Gauss, Euler, Newton, Leibniz, and any other historical geniuses who greatly contributed to mathematics?  Also, how do you define mathematical genius, and in your opinion, is mathematical genius a rarity these days?











Reply
#2
RE: Mathematical Genius: Who Are Humanity's Current Mathematical Geniuses?
Got to put Cantor and Hilbert in there, I think.
[Image: extraordinarywoo-sig.jpg]
Reply
#3
RE: Mathematical Genius: Who Are Humanity's Current Mathematical Geniuses?
As we're discussing famous mathematicians... I swear robvalue looks a little bit like Leonhard Euler.




I hope it's not just me...

Reply
#4
RE: Mathematical Genius: Who Are Humanity's Current Mathematical Geniuses?
(July 9, 2018 at 7:26 pm)Kernel Sohcahtoa Wrote: I'm curious if anyone knows who today's greatest mathematicians are, or in your opinion, who are humanity's greatest mathematicians?  Do you think that any of them are on par with Gauss, Euler, Newton, Leibniz, and any other historical geniuses who greatly contributed to mathematics?  Also, how do you define mathematical genius, and in your opinion, is mathematical genius a rarity these days?
  • Andrew Wiles - The British mathematician who proved Fermat's Last Theorem in 1994.
  • Grigori Perelman - The Russian mathematician who proved the Poincare conjecture in 2003 and then turned down the Fields Medal and a 1 million dollar Millennium Prize. He has abandoned mathematics and is currently living with his mother in Russia.
These guys are probably on par with Leibniz, if not Newton, Gauss and Euler. All other Fields Medalists and Abel Prize winners are also mathematical geniuses. Solving a centuries' old math problem is a pretty strong sign of mathematical genius.

No, I don't think mathematical genius is a rarity these days. Given that the world population today is around 10 times what it was during Newton's time, mathematical genius should also be 10 times more common than it was then. If it isn't, something is seriously wrong...
Reply
#5
RE: Mathematical Genius: Who Are Humanity's Current Mathematical Geniuses?
Abel Prize winners:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abel_Prize#Laureates

All of these names are well-known to mathematicians today. My favoriets (mainly because of my own interests): Atiyah, Singer, Carleson, Wiles, Meyer, Milnor.

Fields Medalists:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fields_Medal

I'm not as familiar with many of the more recent names here, but the older ones are very famous among mathematicians. I suspect the newer ones will be soon. Smile
Reply
#6
RE: Mathematical Genius: Who Are Humanity's Current Mathematical Geniuses?
I worked with many people with doctorates across a spectrum of disciplines in the course of my work. Two individuals with doctorates in Electrical Engineering stand out. I've known dozens who were pretty smart, but these two just defy belief. We had been working a program for a couple of decades, and the one guy we hired took one look at the data and realized that it wasn't right. I'd put that guy close to Maxwell. The other guy had patents in his name before he was even with the company a year. All these other really smart guys, and both of these guys run circles around them. Not mathematicians per se, but if you get that deeply into electromagnetic theory, it's hard to tell them apart. Then again, I've worked with a guy that had a doctorate in electrical engineering that had to be schooled in how to program logarithmic functions in FORTRAN by a guy with a lowly BSc in physics, and another who had to be educated on some antenna theory, by the same guy.
If you get to thinking you’re a person of some influence, try ordering somebody else’s dog around.
Reply
#7
RE: Mathematical Genius: Who Are Humanity's Current Mathematical Geniuses?
(July 9, 2018 at 8:06 pm)Jörmungandr Wrote: Got to put Cantor and Hilbert in there, I think.

if you want to go back a century or so, then Emmy Noether should not be left out.
Reply
#8
RE: Mathematical Genius: Who Are Humanity's Current Mathematical Geniuses?
(July 9, 2018 at 7:26 pm)Kernel Sohcahtoa Wrote: I'm curious if anyone knows who today's greatest mathematicians are, or in your opinion, who are humanity's greatest mathematicians?  Do you think that any of them are on par with Gauss, Euler, Newton, Leibniz, and any other historical geniuses who greatly contributed to mathematics?  Also, how do you define mathematical genius, and in your opinion, is mathematical genius a rarity these days?

Kernel Sohcahtoa?

Am I close?
I don't have an anger problem, I have an idiot problem.
Reply
#9
RE: Mathematical Genius: Who Are Humanity's Current Mathematical Geniuses?
(July 12, 2018 at 6:13 pm)mh.brewer Wrote:
(July 9, 2018 at 7:26 pm)Kernel Sohcahtoa Wrote: I'm curious if anyone knows who today's greatest mathematicians are, or in your opinion, who are humanity's greatest mathematicians?  Do you think that any of them are on par with Gauss, Euler, Newton, Leibniz, and any other historical geniuses who greatly contributed to mathematics?  Also, how do you define mathematical genius, and in your opinion, is mathematical genius a rarity these days?

Kernel Sohcahtoa?

Am I close?

Not sure if you're complimenting him or accusing him of being arrogant.
Reply
#10
RE: Mathematical Genius: Who Are Humanity's Current Mathematical Geniuses?
I'd put Grigori Perelman, and Andrew Miles on there, as Alex said, especially since solving a long-held mathemetical problem should be a good indicator of genius, but I'd also put Preda Mihăilescu, Harald Helfgott, and Thomas Hales there. Seriously, this Quora post alone should give you a good head start about the mathematical geniuses alive today.
Comparing the Universal Oneness of All Life to Yo Mama since 2010.

[Image: harmlesskitchen.png]

I was born with the gift of laughter and a sense the world is mad.
Reply



Possibly Related Threads...
Thread Author Replies Views Last Post
  A mathematical problem I can't seem to get Mathematica to auto solve. highdimensionman 6 1075 May 22, 2022 at 1:10 pm
Last Post: polymath257
  Weight Question - Geniuses Only T0 Th3 M4X 12 1607 December 1, 2018 at 9:44 pm
Last Post: T0 Th3 M4X
  The Mathematical Proof Thread Kernel Sohcahtoa 67 13396 July 6, 2018 at 8:37 pm
Last Post: Fireball
  Mathematical proof.. lifesagift 20 6379 September 26, 2014 at 5:01 pm
Last Post: lifesagift
  Mathematical proof of the existence of God JudgeDracoAmunRa 20 12649 March 30, 2012 at 11:43 am
Last Post: JudgeDracoAmunRa
  Spot the Mathematical Fallacy Tiberius 16 7131 March 25, 2010 at 6:57 am
Last Post: Violet
  Mathematical claims of 'Bible Codes'...is there any truth in the maths? CoxRox 12 8516 January 9, 2009 at 5:23 pm
Last Post: Tiberius



Users browsing this thread: 1 Guest(s)