The 2008 Abel Prize was awarded to John Griggs Thompson of the University of Florida and Jacques Tits of the Collège de France for their contributions to group theory, the mathematical field that analyzes symmetry. The Abel Prize is widely considered mathematics’ equivalent of the Nobel Prize.
Thompson, a professor at the University of Florida, proved fundamental results about symmetry that led to the discovery of the basic building blocks of all finite symmetries, one of the greatest findings in 20th century mathematics.
Log in
Subscribers, enter your e-mail address for full access to the Science News archives and digital editions.