Ruth Lawrence
Encyclopedia
Ruth Elke Lawrence-Naimark is an Associate Professor of mathematics
at the Einstein Institute of Mathematics, Hebrew University of Jerusalem
, and a researcher in knot theory
and algebraic topology
. Outside academia
, she is best known for being a child prodigy
in mathematics
.
, England
. Her parents, Harry Lawrence and Sylvia Greybourne, were both computer consultants. When Ruth was five, her father gave up his job so that he could educate her at home
.
successfully sat GCSE mathematics aged five. Also at the age of nine she achieved a Grade A at A-level Pure Mathematics, an age record which stood until 2009 when Zohaib Ahmed passed A level mathematics with an A grade aged just turned nine years old. In 1981 she passed the Oxford University interview entrance examination in mathematics, coming first out of all 530 candidates sitting the examination, and joining St Hugh's College
in 1983 at the age of just twelve.
Ruth's admission to Oxford was controversial and led an American faculty member, Matt Ginsberg, to propose to the Oxford faculty that no further students be admitted under the age of 14 unless compelling reasons for their admission at such an age could be provided. Ginsberg's motion was defeated by a vote of (approximately) 540-450 by the Oxford faculty as a whole.
At Oxford, her father continued to be actively involved in her education, accompanying her to all lectures and tutorials. Ruth completed her bachelor's degree
in two years, instead of the normal three, and graduated in 1985 at the age of 13 with a starred first and special commendation. Attracting considerable press interest, she became the youngest British person to gain a first-class degree, and the youngest to graduate from the University of Oxford
in modern times.
Ruth followed her first degree with a second degree in physics in 1986 and a D.Phil
in mathematics at Oxford in June 1989, at the age of 17. Her thesis title was Homology representations of braid groups and her thesis adviser was Sir Michael Atiyah
.
, in Communications in Mathematical Physics
, introduced, among other things, certain novel linear representations of the braid group — known as Lawrence–Krammer representation
. In papers published in 2000 and 2001, Daan Krammer and Stephen Bigelow established the faithfulness of Lawrence's representation. This result goes by the slogan "braid group
s are linear."
Ruth's first academic post was at Harvard University
, where she became a Junior Fellow in 1990 at the age of 19. In 1993, Ruth moved to the University of Michigan
, where she became an Associate Professor with tenure in 1997. In 1999 Ruth emigrated to Jerusalem and took up the post of Associate Professor at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
In 1998, Ruth married the Israeli mathematician Ari Naimark and changed her name to Ruth Lawrence-Naimark. The couple have four children, Yehuda Bezalel (born 2000), Esther Miriam (born 2001), Batsheva Simcha (born 2003), and Yehoshua Aharon (born 2006).
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
at the Einstein Institute of Mathematics, Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Hebrew University of Jerusalem
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem ; ; abbreviated HUJI) is Israel's second-oldest university, after the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. The Hebrew University has three campuses in Jerusalem and one in Rehovot. The world's largest Jewish studies library is located on its Edmond J...
, and a researcher in knot theory
Knot theory
In topology, knot theory is the study of mathematical knots. While inspired by knots which appear in daily life in shoelaces and rope, a mathematician's knot differs in that the ends are joined together so that it cannot be undone. In precise mathematical language, a knot is an embedding of a...
and algebraic topology
Algebraic topology
Algebraic topology is a branch of mathematics which uses tools from abstract algebra to study topological spaces. The basic goal is to find algebraic invariants that classify topological spaces up to homeomorphism, though usually most classify up to homotopy equivalence.Although algebraic topology...
. Outside academia
Academia
Academia is the community of students and scholars engaged in higher education and research.-Etymology:The word comes from the akademeia in ancient Greece. Outside the city walls of Athens, the gymnasium was made famous by Plato as a center of learning...
, she is best known for being a child prodigy
Child prodigy
A child prodigy is someone who, at an early age, masters one or more skills far beyond his or her level of maturity. One criterion for classifying prodigies is: a prodigy is a child, typically younger than 18 years old, who is performing at the level of a highly trained adult in a very demanding...
in mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
.
Youth
Ruth Lawrence was born in BrightonBrighton
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. Her parents, Harry Lawrence and Sylvia Greybourne, were both computer consultants. When Ruth was five, her father gave up his job so that he could educate her at home
Homeschooling
Homeschooling or homeschool is the education of children at home, typically by parents but sometimes by tutors, rather than in other formal settings of public or private school...
.
Education
At the age of nine, Ruth gained an O-level in mathematics, setting a new age record, later surpassed in 2001 when Arran FernandezArran Fernandez
Arran Fernandez, England, born June 1995, is a home-educated student who broke the age record for gaining a General Certificate of Secondary Education , the English academic qualification usually taken at age 16. Sitting the examinations at the age of five, he was awarded GCSE Mathematics in 2001...
successfully sat GCSE mathematics aged five. Also at the age of nine she achieved a Grade A at A-level Pure Mathematics, an age record which stood until 2009 when Zohaib Ahmed passed A level mathematics with an A grade aged just turned nine years old. In 1981 she passed the Oxford University interview entrance examination in mathematics, coming first out of all 530 candidates sitting the examination, and joining St Hugh's College
St Hugh's College, Oxford
St Hugh's College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford. It is located on a fourteen and a half acre site on St Margaret's Road, to the North of the city centre. It was founded in 1886 as a women's college, and accepted its first male students in its centenary year in 1986...
in 1983 at the age of just twelve.
Ruth's admission to Oxford was controversial and led an American faculty member, Matt Ginsberg, to propose to the Oxford faculty that no further students be admitted under the age of 14 unless compelling reasons for their admission at such an age could be provided. Ginsberg's motion was defeated by a vote of (approximately) 540-450 by the Oxford faculty as a whole.
At Oxford, her father continued to be actively involved in her education, accompanying her to all lectures and tutorials. Ruth completed her bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
in two years, instead of the normal three, and graduated in 1985 at the age of 13 with a starred first and special commendation. Attracting considerable press interest, she became the youngest British person to gain a first-class degree, and the youngest to graduate from the University of Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
in modern times.
Ruth followed her first degree with a second degree in physics in 1986 and a D.Phil
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
in mathematics at Oxford in June 1989, at the age of 17. Her thesis title was Homology representations of braid groups and her thesis adviser was Sir Michael Atiyah
Michael Atiyah
Sir Michael Francis Atiyah, OM, FRS, FRSE is a British mathematician working in geometry.Atiyah grew up in Sudan and Egypt but spent most of his academic life in the United Kingdom at Oxford and Cambridge, and in the United States at the Institute for Advanced Study...
.
Academic career
Her 1990 paper, Homological representations of the Hecke algebraHecke algebra
In mathematics, the Iwahori–Hecke algebra, or Hecke algebra, named for Erich Hecke and Nagayoshi Iwahori, is a one-parameter deformation of the group algebra of a Coxeter group....
, in Communications in Mathematical Physics
Communications in Mathematical Physics
Communications in Mathematical Physics is a peer-reviewed academic journal published by Springer. The journal publishes papers in all fields of mathematical physics, but focuses particularly in Analysis related to condensed matter physics, statistical mechanics and quantum field theory, and in...
, introduced, among other things, certain novel linear representations of the braid group — known as Lawrence–Krammer representation
Lawrence–Krammer representation
In mathematics the Lawrence–Krammer representation is a representation of the braid groups. It fits into a family of representations called the Lawrence representations...
. In papers published in 2000 and 2001, Daan Krammer and Stephen Bigelow established the faithfulness of Lawrence's representation. This result goes by the slogan "braid group
Braid group
In mathematics, the braid group on n strands, denoted by Bn, is a group which has an intuitive geometrical representation, and in a sense generalizes the symmetric group Sn. Here, n is a natural number; if n > 1, then Bn is an infinite group...
s are linear."
Ruth's first academic post was at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, where she became a Junior Fellow in 1990 at the age of 19. In 1993, Ruth moved to the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
, where she became an Associate Professor with tenure in 1997. In 1999 Ruth emigrated to Jerusalem and took up the post of Associate Professor at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
In 1998, Ruth married the Israeli mathematician Ari Naimark and changed her name to Ruth Lawrence-Naimark. The couple have four children, Yehuda Bezalel (born 2000), Esther Miriam (born 2001), Batsheva Simcha (born 2003), and Yehoshua Aharon (born 2006).
External links
- Ruth Lawrence's home page at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem
- 1985: Teenage genius gets a first from the BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
- 2009: Boy, 8, sets A-level maths record from the BBC