The School of Mathematics and Statistics invites you to
The Rankin-Sneddon Lecture 2023
The Social Machine of Mathematics
Professor Ursula Martin CBE FREng FRSE
University of Edinburgh / University of Oxford
This event is postponed
Lecture Room 116 of the Mathematics and Statistics Building, University of Glasgow
Professor Ursula Martin CBE FREng FRSE is Professor Emerita of Computer Science at the University of Edinburgh, and an Emeritus Fellow of Wadham College Oxford. She has worked in combinatorics, group theory, and the application of logical methods in computer science, particularly computer proof, and now investigates the culture and context of mathematics, and its impact on the practice of mathematics. She is the author of a popular book on the mathematics of Ada Lovelace.
Abstract
How does mathematics come about? In this talk I’ll look at what philosophers, social scientists and historians can tell us about what we are doing when we do mathematics, including recent work on explanation in mathematics, and on how mathematics has impact. I’ll also highlight new approaches to collaborative mathematics, computer supported formal proof, and AI-assisted proof, which challenge our understanding of what a proof might be.
We are looking forward to having you.