Maryna Viazovska Wins National Latsis Prize

(Swiss National Science Foundation, September 21, 2020)

Following her scientific breakthrough in solving the centuries-old sphere-packing problem, EPFL Professor Maryna Viazovska was recently announced as the winner of the 2020 National Latsis Prize, which is awarded to young researchers under the age of 40. Viazovska caused a sensation in the world of modern mathematics with her original and amazingly simple calculation of the densest sphere packing in the much more complex 8th and 24th dimensions - the latter in cooperation with a research group. Research on sphere packing in high-dimensional spaces have several practical applications in everyday technology, such as in the analysis of crystal structures or in troubleshooting signal transmission of mobile phones, space probes or internet connections, and Viazovska also hopes that the prize “will help to inspire young girls to go into mathematics.”