Lai-Sang Young facts for kids
Lai-Sang Lily Young (born in 1952) is a famous mathematician from Hong Kong and America. She is a top professor of science, math, and brain science at New York University. Professor Young studies how things change over time, like in dynamical systems. She also looks at how likely events are to happen (probability) and how tiny particles behave (statistical mechanics). One of her big achievements was creating a new way to study how systems change, called "Markov returns," in 1998. This helped her understand complex systems better.
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Becoming a Mathematician
Lai-Sang Young was born and grew up in Hong Kong. She moved to the United States for her college education.
Early Studies
- She earned her first degree from the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1973.
- Then, she went to the University of California, Berkeley for her advanced degrees.
- She received her master's degree in 1976.
- She finished her doctorate degree in 1978. Her teacher was Rufus Bowen, another famous mathematician.
Teaching Career
After her studies, Professor Young taught at several universities across the U.S.:
- She taught at Northwestern University from 1979 to 1980.
- She was at Michigan State University from 1980 to 1986.
- She taught at the University of Arizona from 1987 to 1990.
- She worked at the University of California, Los Angeles from 1991 to 1999.
- Since 1999, she has been a special professor at New York University.
Awards and Special Honors
Professor Young has received many important awards for her work in mathematics.
Prestigious Fellowships
- In 1985, she became a Sloan Fellow. This is a special honor for young scientists.
- In 1997, she became a Guggenheim Fellow. This award helps people do important research.
Major Mathematics Prizes
- In 1993, she won the Ruth Lyttle Satter Prize in Mathematics. The American Mathematical Society gives this award to outstanding female mathematicians. She won it for her important work on how dynamic systems behave.
- In 2004, she was chosen as a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. This is a group of very smart people from different fields.
- In 2020, she was elected to the National Academy of Sciences. This is one of the highest honors for scientists in the U.S.
- In 2021, she received the Jürgen Moser Lecture prize for her deep contributions to understanding complex changing systems.
- In 2023, she was awarded the Heinz Hopf Prize.
- In 2024, she received the Rolf Schock Prize.
Invited Speaker at Congresses
- She was asked to speak at the International Congress of Mathematicians in 1994. This is a very big meeting for mathematicians worldwide.
- She was also a main speaker at the same congress in 2018.
Special Lectures
- In 2005, she gave the Noether Lecture for the Association for Women in Mathematics. Her talk was about how systems change from simple patterns to more complex ones.
- In 2007, she gave the Sonia Kovalevsky lecture. This lecture also celebrates women in math and is supported by two big math groups.
See also
In Spanish: Lai-Sang Young para niños
