Abel Prize for math awarded to woman for first time

This handout photo taken on March 18, 2019 in Princeton, New Jersey and released by the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters/Institute for Advanced Study shows scientist Karen Uhlenbeck, who will be awarded the prestigious Norwegian Abel Prize for mathematics. Andrea Kane/Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters/AFP

OSLO, Norway — The Abel Prize in mathematics was on Tuesday awarded to Karen Uhlenbeck of the United States for her work on partial differential equations, the first woman to win the award, the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters said.

"Karen Uhlenbeck receives the Abel Prize 2019 for her fundamental work in geometric analysis and gauge theory, which has dramatically changed the mathematical landscape," said Abel Committee chairman Hans Munthe-Kaas in a statement.

"Her theories have revolutionized our understanding of minimal surfaces, such as those formed by soap bubbles, and more general minimization problems in higher dimensions," he said.

Uhlenbeck, 76, is a visiting senior research scholar at Princeton University, as well as visiting associate at the Institute for Advanced Study (IAS), both in the US.

The Cleveland native "developed tools and methods in global analysis, which are now in the toolbox of every geometer and analyst," the Academy said.

She is also a role model and a strong advocate for gender equality in science and mathematics.

She is the first woman to win the prize, which comes with a check for six million kroner (€620,000, $703,000).

Named after the 19th century Norwegian mathematician Niels Henrik Abel, the prize was established by the Oslo government in 2002 and first awarded a year later, to honor outstanding scientific work in the field of mathematics, a discipline not included among the Nobel awards.

Along with the Fields Medal, which is awarded every four years at the Congress of the International Mathematical Union (IMU), it is one of the world's most prestigious math prizes. — Agence France-Presse