NTU Chair Prof. Shing-Tung Yau Receives Marcel Grossmann Award

NTU Chair Prof. Shing-Tung Yau (丘成桐), an Academician of Academia Sinica, was awarded the 2018 Marcel Grossmann Award on July 2 at the 15th Marcel Grossmann Meeting in Rome, becoming the first ethnic Chinese mathematician to receive this internationally renowned physics award. Prof. Yau was granted this award “for the proof of the positivity of total mass in the theory of general relativity and perfecting as well the concept of quasi-local mass, for his proof of the Calabi conjecture, for his continuous inspiring role in the study of black holes physics.”

Prof. Shing-Tung Yau is one of the world’s most eminent mathematicians. His research on differential geometry has influenced various disciplines, including astronomy and theoretical physics. He proved the positive mass conjecture in general relativity, showing that Einstein’s theory is consistent and stable. Moreover, his proof of the Calabi conjecture enabled physicians to confirm the feasibility of string theory in becoming a unified theory of nature.

Prof. Yau is also the winner of many prestigious awards, including the Fields Medal (1982), Crafoord Prize (1994), and Wolf Prize (2010). He facilitated the establishment of the National Center for Theoretical Sciences in Taiwan, and is currently a member of the center’s international advisory board. In addition, Prof. Yau attends the Shing-Tung Yau High School Mathematics Award events every year in person, making seminal contributions to talent development and research enhancement in Taiwan and abroad. He remains actively engaged in various teaching and research activities. For example, he has founded the “Black Hole Initiative,” an interdisciplinary center at Harvard University that involves research in such fields as astronomy, physics, mathematics, and philosophy. It is the first center in the world devoted to the study of black holes.