Indian mathematician Nikhil Srivastava wins Polya Prize

Microsoft Research India mathematician Nikhil Srivastava has won the prestigious George Polya Prize for solving a math riddle called the Kadison-Singer conjecture which was eluded for over 50 years.

He was named winner along with Adam W. Marcus, and Daniel A. Spielman of Yale University.

They will be awarded with the 2014 George Pólya Prize at the July 7-11 annual meeting of the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM), in Chicago.

The selection committee wanted recognized the trio “for the solution to the Kadison-Singer problem.”

“Not only have Marcus, Spielman, and Srivastava proved an important conjecture, which has consequences in various areas of mathematics, but their elegant methods promise to be applicable to a broad range of other problems, as well,” the citation said.

“It is definitely inspiring and motivating to be put on a list with so many great mathematicians,” Srivastava was quoted as saying.

“My focus is mainly to better understand the techniques that went into this proof,” he said adding, “I suspect it is an instance of much more general phenomena, rather than a one-off.”

(Input from IANS)

• About the Author

About Sprightly Spirit

“I dare do all that may become a man. Who dares more is none”. And all, may be. It may be the vigor. Or the spirit. Or the courage to avoid being “politically correct” or bent. And, ban all averse with immaculate overture of graciously fathomable words firm in views. Subtle. Justifying the undying conscience. Values. Knowledge. And, dares to stay true. True to own. True to the world. And, to the words. With a dream in eyes it exists. In you. In me. In all. The sprite that never shies away. The spirit that never dies!