Photography Book of Mathematicians Captures a Wide Range of Subjects

September 8, 2009

Nearly a hundred mathematical innovators appear in Mathematicians: An Outer View of the Inner World, compiled by photographer Mariana Cook. With autobiographical essays accompanying each large black-and-white portrait, the collection illuminates a colorful and diverse group of men and women dedicated to the subject of mathematics.

"The startling contrast between lined faces and lively minds suggests that the passionate pursuit of mathematics is an ideal formula for aging gracefully, even joyfully," observed Sylvia Nasar, author of A Beautiful Mind.

While Cook's "sitters can't necessarily be taken as a representative sample, they're as extensive a survey as there's likely to be," noted Mark Feeney of the Boston Globe. "And looking at them we see a profession that largely defeats stereotyping."

Ranging from Fields Medal winners, to mathematicians just beginning major careers, to long-established celebrities in the discipline, the subjects include David Blackwell, Henri Cartan (who died last year at the age of 104), John Horton Conway, Pierre Deligne, Timothy Gowers, Frances Kirwan, Peter Lax, William Massey, John Milnor, Cathleen Morawetz, John Nash, and Karen Uhlenbeck. Their personal essays display a mixture of reflection, opinion, and humor on how they became interested in mathematics, why they love the subject, how they remain motivated in the face of mathematical challenges, and how their greatest contributions have generated new questions for future exploration.

Cook has "gathered a wonderful collection of reflective essays," said David Richeson, author of Euler's Gem: The Polyhedron Formula and the Birth of Topology, "and she has captured the essence of these interesting people through her photographs."

Source: Boston Globe, Aug. 23, 2009.