Muriel Kennett Wales facts for kids

Muriel Kennett Wales was a smart mathematician from Ireland and Canada. She was born on June 9, 1913, and passed away on August 8, 2009. Many believe she was the first woman born in Ireland to get a PhD in pure mathematics. This means she earned the highest degree in a very advanced type of math.

Muriel Wales's Life Story

Muriel Kennett was born in Belfast, Ireland, on June 9, 1913. When she was just one year old, in 1914, her mother moved to Vancouver, British Columbia, in Canada. Her mother soon remarried, and Muriel started using her stepfather's last name, Wales.

Her Education Journey

Muriel first studied at the University of British Columbia. She earned her first degree (BA) in 1934. Then, she got her master's degree (MA) in 1937. For her master's, she wrote a special paper called Determination of Bases for Certain Quartic Number Fields.

Later, in 1941, she earned her PhD from the University of Toronto. Her PhD paper was titled Theory Of Algebraic Functions Based On The Use Of Cycles. Her professor was Samuel Beatty. He was also a very important mathematician, as he was the first person to get a PhD in math in Canada back in 1915.

Working Life and Retirement

During most of the 1940s, Muriel worked in the field of atomic energy. She worked in cities like Toronto and Montreal. By 1949, she decided to retire and moved back to Vancouver. There, she worked for her stepfather's shipping company.

See also

In Spanish: Muriel Kennett Wales para niños