Kathryn Mann facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Kathryn Mann
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Mann at UC Berkeley in 2014
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| Education | University of Toronto (B.MathPhil) University of Chicago (Ph.D. in Mathematics) |
| Occupation | mathematician |
| Awards | Rudin Award Birman Prize Duszenko Award Sloan Fellowship |
Kathryn Mann is a talented mathematician. She has won several important awards for her work. These include the Rudin Award, the Birman Prize, the Duszenko Award, and a Sloan Fellowship. Her research focuses on special areas of mathematics called geometric topology and geometric group theory. She is currently a professor of mathematics at Cornell University.
Contents
Kathryn Mann's Journey in Mathematics
Early Education and Degrees
Kathryn Mann started her higher education at the University of Toronto. She graduated in 2008 with a bachelor's degree. This degree was in both mathematics and philosophy.
Later, she continued her studies at the University of Chicago. In 2014, she earned her Ph.D. in mathematics. Her main research project for her Ph.D. was about "Components of Representation Spaces." Her professor, Benson Farb, guided her through this work.
Building a Career in Academia
After finishing her Ph.D., Dr. Mann worked at several universities. From 2014 to 2016, she was a visiting professor and researcher at the University of California, Berkeley. She also spent time as a researcher at the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute in 2015.
In 2016, she was a visiting professor at Pierre and Marie Curie University in France. Then, from 2017 to 2019, she was an assistant professor at Brown University. In 2019, she joined Cornell University as an assistant professor. She continues her important work there today.
Exploring Mathematical Research
Understanding Symmetries in Shapes
Dr. Mann's research explores the symmetries of manifolds. Imagine a shape, like a sphere or a donut. A symmetry is a way you can move or turn that shape so it looks exactly the same. Manifolds are complex mathematical shapes. Dr. Mann studies how these shapes can be moved or transformed while keeping their original appearance.
Solving Big Math Problems
She has made big steps in solving a difficult problem. This problem was first asked by another mathematician, Étienne Ghys. It asks: If the symmetries of one mathematical shape act on another shape, does the first shape have to be smaller or the same size as the second one? Her work helps us understand how different mathematical spaces relate to each other.
She also studies the rigidity of groups of symmetries. This means she looks at how "stiff" or "unchanging" these groups are. It's like asking if a group of movements can only happen in one specific way.
Awards and Achievements
Recognized for Excellence
Kathryn Mann has received many awards for her outstanding work. In 2016, she won the Mary Ellen Rudin Award. This award recognized her deep and wide-ranging work. It was specifically for her studies on how groups of movements affect manifolds.
The Association for Women in Mathematics honored her in 2019. They gave her the Joan & Joseph Birman Research Prize in Topology and Geometry. This prize was for her major discoveries. These discoveries were about how groups of actions behave on manifolds.
Also in 2019, the Wrocław Mathematicians Foundation gave her the Kamil Duszenko Award. These awards show how important her contributions are to the field of mathematics.
Funding for Future Discoveries
Dr. Mann has also received important funding for her research. She was supported by a National Science Foundation CAREER Award. She also received a Sloan Research Fellowship. These fellowships help scientists continue their important research.
