Emmy Noether, the Math Pioneer Who Faced Down Sexism and the Nazis
17/07/2021
Emmy Noether made significant contributions to theoretical mathematics. Photo: Konrad Jacobs, Erlangen/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA
When Albert Einstein wrote an obituary for Emmy Noether in 1935, he described her as a “creative mathematical genius” who – despite “unselfish, significant work over a period of many years” – did not get the recognition she deserved.
Noether made groundbreaking contributions to mathematics at a time when women were barred from academia and when Jewish people like herself faced persecution in Nazi Germany, where she lived.
The year 2021 marks the 100th anniversary of Noether’s landmark paper on ring theory, a branch of theoretical mathematics that is still fascinating and challenging mathematicians like me today.