Ragni Piene‘s introduction to mathematics included writing equations in the snow while skiing with her father – who was himself a mathematician. So for her, mathematics was the default option for getting into university. Now she is a professor at the University of Oslo. She is also involved in setting up the Abel prize, which is an answer to the fact that there is no Nobel prize for mathematics. And she has edited, with Arnfinn Laudal, The Legacy of Niels Henrik Abel, a collection of research papers published next month by Springer-Verlag.
Isn’t it startling that no woman had ever been appointed to the top body…
