To celebrate International Women's Day we bring you some of our favourite articles and interviews from the last year that have been written by, about, or with major input from, female mathematicians and physicists. It's been an eventful year no matter how you measure it: from quantum physics to gravitational waves!
Fighting future pandemics — Julia Gog, Professor of Mathematical Biology, tells us about an innovative project her team are working on with the BBC, that combines outreach, citizen science and new mathematical research.
Listening for ripples in spacetime — We spoke to Gabriela González Professor of Physics and Astronomy and former Spokesperson of the LIGO Scientific Collaboration about the heroic efforts to detect gravitational waves.
Overbooking: How to avoid plane rage — After the headlines when United Airlines dragged a passenger off an overbooked flight, Christine Currie, an Associate Professor in Operational Research, explained the maths behind overbooking.
The beauty of maths is in the brain of the beholder — Josefina Alvarez, Emeritus Professor of Mathematics, told us about a study investigating if the brain perceives mathematical beauty in the same way it perceives beauty in other forms.
Uncovering the mathematics of information — Carola-Bibiane Schönlieb told us about the research into the mathematics of information that she and colleagues are conducting at the new Cantab Capital Institute for Mathematics of Information, of which she is the Director.
Quantum device solves very hard problem — We spoke to Natalia Berloff, Professor of Applied Mathematics, about her research on quantum particles that are both light and matter, and how they may help solve infamous NP hard problems.
Remembering Maryam Mirzakhani — The brilliant mathematician and Fields medallist, Maryam Mirzakhani, died in July 2017 at the age of 40. We remembered her work and the impact she had on mathematics.
Women of mathematics — We were thrilled to contribute to the Women of Mathematics photo exhibition when it was shown at the University of Cambridge. We interviewed six brilliant Cambridge mathematicians – Natalia Berloff, Nilanjana Datta, Anne-Christine Davis, Holly Krieger and Carola-Bibiane Schönlieb – about their work and their experience as mathematicians.
On the tiles — And finally Becky Warren, our colleague who runs the brilliant Hands On Maths Roadshow, showed us some of the wonderful puzzles she makes and explained what mathematics has caught her eye.