Efim Zelmanov (1994 Fields Medal) talks to University of Oxford Mathematician Dr Tom Crawford about why people hate maths, how he solved the Burnside problem, and what makes math beautiful. Full list of questions below.

Recorded at the 2023 Heidelberg Laureate Forum. Find out more about the event at https://www.heidelberg-laureate-forum...

The Fields Medal is awarded every four years during the opening ceremony of the International Congress of Mathematicians (ICM). It recognizes outstanding mathematical achievement for existing work and for the promise of future achievement. Two to four medals are awarded to mathematicians who have to be of age less than forty years on January 1 of the Congress year. The Fields Medal, established in 1936 and named after the Canadian mathematician J. C. Fields, is one of the most prestigious awards in the field of mathematics and often described as the "Nobel Prize of Mathematics".

Efim Zelmanov was awarded the Fields Medal in 1994 “for the solution of the restricted Burnside problem in group theory”. Efim is the Chair Professor at the Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech).

Full list of questions covered in the interview:

Why do people hate mathematics?
Is maths a science or an art?
How did you feel when you solved the Burnside problem and were awarded the Fields medal?
Will the remainder of the Burnside problem be solved anytime soon?
What area of maths do you find the most beautiful?
Should maths be split into pure and applied subjects?
What is your mathematical genealogy?
Do you prefer Newton or Leibniz notation for derivatives?
Is zero a natural number?
Was maths discovered or invented?
Do you have a favourite number?
Do you prefer blackboards or whiteboards?

Links to Tom's other interviews with Laureates in Maths and Computer Science.

Whitfield Diffie:    • Discovery of Public Key Cryptography ...  
Lesley Lamport:    • Ig Nobel Prize with Leslie Lamport (2...  
Alessio Figalli:    • Maths Career of Alessio Figalli (2018...  
Martin Hairer:    • Playing Tetris with Martin Hairer (Fi...  
Michael Atiyah:    • Sir Michael Atiyah and his Love of Maths  
Daniel Spielman:    • Solving the Hardest Problems with Dan...  

Links to the other events/talks mentioned in the video:

Why do people hate mathematics?    • Laureate Discussion: Why Do So Many P...  
Laszlo Lovasz lecture at HLF 2023    • Lecture: Lovász | September 28  
Efim Zelmanov: is math a science or an art?    • Efim Zelmanov at GYSS 2019 - Mathemat...  
Where can mathematics and computer science interact fruitfully?    • Virtual HLF – Laureate Discussion: Wh...  

Find your own Math Genealogy here: https://www.mathgenealogy.org/

Produced by Dr Tom Crawford at the University of Oxford. Tom is Public Engagement Lead at the Oxford University Department of Continuing Education: https://www.conted.ox.ac.uk/

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With thanks to
Efim Zlemanov
Heidelberg Laureate Forum
Heidelberg Laureate Forum Foundation
Math Genealogy
IMU