MacArthur Fellow and Fields Medal Winner Visits Exeter

November 8, 2006

David Mumford '53 met with students after presenting an all-school assembly

You might think that David Mumford '53, winner of the Fields medal (a mathematics rival to the Nobel), a MacArthur Fellow and a man known throughout the world for his mastery of pure and applied math, could be a bit off-putting. Hardly. Mumford came to Exeter last week as a Harkness Fellow. He proved not only that he knows his stuff, but that he can motivate students along with the best.

He started his assembly talk by donning an Einstein-style wig and loosening up the crowd. "On Halloween, I dressed up as a mad scientist, with lab coat and Einstein wig," he said. "My friends said – that's you!" By the time he got to the heart of the matter – stochastic models, polytopes, polyhedra, infinity and spheres in four dimensions – the students were right with him, laughing as he interspersed his serious talk of mathematics with funny asides. Dressed informally in a tweed sweater and slacks, he looked every bit the everyman.

Students at Exeter are exposed to "an incredibly impressive amount of mathematics," he said to the all-school assembly. "I am bowled over by what you are doing….Congratulations!"

In a brief 30 minutes, Mumford covered a lot of territory. He started in with pure math, which he described as "building castles in the sky." He then moved on to applied math, pointing out that with applied math, "You're always simplifying the world, but you often get insight." And he finished up with a discussion of the many good reasons to become a professional mathematician, lauding mathematics as a universal subject. "Mathematics is an international language. Like art, it is not constricted by international boundaries." He cited his work with mathematicians based around the world as evidence.

After the assembly, Mumford met informally with interested students and attended math classes.

Mumford's visit is part of the yearlong celebration of the 75th anniversary of the Harkness gift to Exeter. He is the sixth Harkness Fellow to visit campus.

Interested in learning more?

Read more about David Mumford…
Learn about Exeter's mathematics department offerings…
Check out the events associated with Harkness 75th Anniversary Celebration…