NYU Professor Hong Wang becomes third woman to win prestigious Fields Medal

A New York University professor has become just the third woman to win the Fields Medal, the highest prize in mathematics. Hong Wang was recognized for major advances in Fourier restriction theory and the Kakeya problem in three dimensions, a century-old challenge in geometric measure theory. The Fields Medal is presented every four years to mathematicians under 40. Wang, who also serves as a professor at the Institut des Hautes Études Scientifiques in Frances, joins three other mathematicians to receive the award this year. NYU Provost Gig Dopico called Wang “a model for today’s mathematicians and for those who dream of careers in STEM fields.”