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Edward Witten

 
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Edward Witten (born August 26, 1951) is an American
United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
 theoretical physicist and professor
Professor

The meaning of the word professor varies. In some English-speaking countries, it refers to a senior academic who holds a departmental chair, especially as head of the Academic department, or a personal chair awarded specifically to that individual....
 at the Institute for Advanced Study
Institute for Advanced Study

The Institute for Advanced Study, located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States, is a center for theoretical research. The Institute is perhaps best known as the academic home of Albert Einstein, John von Neumann, and Kurt G?del, after their immigration to the United States....
. He is one of the world's leading researchers in superstring theory
Superstring theory

Superstring theory is an attempt to explain all of the Elementary particle and fundamental forces of nature in one theory by modelling them as vibrations of tiny supersymmetry strings....
. He has made extensive contributions to theoretical physics
Theoretical physics

Theoretical physics employs mathematical models and abstractions of physics in an attempt to explain experimental data taken of the natural world....
, and in 1990 he was awarded the Fields Medal
Fields Medal

The Fields Medal is a prize awarded to two, three, or four mathematicians not over 40 years of age at each International Congress of Mathematicians of the International Mathematical Union, a meeting that takes place every four years....
 for his influence on the development of mathematics. In 1995, he suggested the existence of M-theory
M-theory

In theoretical physics, M-theory is a new limit of string theory in which 11 dimensions of spacetime may be identified. Because the dimensionality exceeds the dimensionality of five superstring theories in 10 dimensions, it was originally believed that the 11-dimensional theory is more fundamental and unifies all string theories ....
 at a conference at the University of Southern California
University of Southern California

The University of Southern California is a private university, nonsectarian, research university located in the University Park, Los Angeles, California neighborhood in Los Angeles, California, California, United States....
, and used M-theory to explain a number of previously observed dualities, sparking a flurry of new research in string theory called the second superstring revolution
Second superstring revolution

The second superstring revolution was the intense wave of breakthroughs in string theory that took place approximately between 1994 and 1997.The different versions of superstring theory were unified, as long hoped, by new equivalences....
.

rd Witten was born in Baltimore, Maryland
Baltimore, Maryland

Baltimore is an independent city and the largest city in the U.S. state of Maryland in the United States. Baltimore is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay....
 to a Jewish family, the son of Lorraine W.






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Edward Witten (born August 26, 1951) is an American
United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
 theoretical physicist and professor
Professor

The meaning of the word professor varies. In some English-speaking countries, it refers to a senior academic who holds a departmental chair, especially as head of the Academic department, or a personal chair awarded specifically to that individual....
 at the Institute for Advanced Study
Institute for Advanced Study

The Institute for Advanced Study, located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States, is a center for theoretical research. The Institute is perhaps best known as the academic home of Albert Einstein, John von Neumann, and Kurt G?del, after their immigration to the United States....
. He is one of the world's leading researchers in superstring theory
Superstring theory

Superstring theory is an attempt to explain all of the Elementary particle and fundamental forces of nature in one theory by modelling them as vibrations of tiny supersymmetry strings....
. He has made extensive contributions to theoretical physics
Theoretical physics

Theoretical physics employs mathematical models and abstractions of physics in an attempt to explain experimental data taken of the natural world....
, and in 1990 he was awarded the Fields Medal
Fields Medal

The Fields Medal is a prize awarded to two, three, or four mathematicians not over 40 years of age at each International Congress of Mathematicians of the International Mathematical Union, a meeting that takes place every four years....
 for his influence on the development of mathematics. In 1995, he suggested the existence of M-theory
M-theory

In theoretical physics, M-theory is a new limit of string theory in which 11 dimensions of spacetime may be identified. Because the dimensionality exceeds the dimensionality of five superstring theories in 10 dimensions, it was originally believed that the 11-dimensional theory is more fundamental and unifies all string theories ....
 at a conference at the University of Southern California
University of Southern California

The University of Southern California is a private university, nonsectarian, research university located in the University Park, Los Angeles, California neighborhood in Los Angeles, California, California, United States....
, and used M-theory to explain a number of previously observed dualities, sparking a flurry of new research in string theory called the second superstring revolution
Second superstring revolution

The second superstring revolution was the intense wave of breakthroughs in string theory that took place approximately between 1994 and 1997.The different versions of superstring theory were unified, as long hoped, by new equivalences....
.

Birth and education

Edward Witten was born in Baltimore, Maryland
Baltimore, Maryland

Baltimore is an independent city and the largest city in the U.S. state of Maryland in the United States. Baltimore is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay....
 to a Jewish family, the son of Lorraine W. Witten and Louis Witten
Louis Witten

Louis Witten is an United States theoretical physics and the father of Edward Witten.Witten's research has centered around classical gravitation, including the discovery of certain exact electrovacuum solutions to the Einstein field equation....
, a physicist
Physicist

A physicist is a scientist who studies or practices physics. Physicists study a wide range of physical phenomena in many Physics#Major fields of physics spanning all length scales: from atom particles of which all ordinary matter is made to the behavior of the material Universe as a whole ....
 specializing in gravitation and general relativity
General relativity

General relativity or the general theory of relativity is the Geometry Theoretical physics of gravitation published by Albert Einstein in 1916....
. He received his bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree

A bachelor's degree is usually an undergraduate academic degree awarded for a course or major that generally lasts for three, four, or in some cases and countries, five or six years....
 in history (with a minor in linguistics) from Brandeis University
Brandeis University

Brandeis University is a Private university research university with a liberal arts focus, located in Waltham, Massachusetts, United States. It is located in the southwestern corner of Waltham, nine miles west of Boston, Massachusetts....
. Witten planned to become a political journalist, and published articles in The New Republic
The New Republic

The New Republic is an United States magazine of politics and the arts. It is published semimonthly and has a circulation of approximately 60,000....
 and The Nation
The Nation

The Nation is a weekly United States periodical devoted to politics and culture, self-described as "the flagship of the left-wing politics." Founded on July 6, 1865 at the start of Reconstruction era of the United States as a supporter of the victorious North in the American Civil War, it is the oldest continuously published weekly magaz...
. He worked briefly for George McGovern
George McGovern

George Stanley McGovern, is a former United States United States House of Representatives, United States Senate, and Democratic Party President of the United States nominee....
's presidential campaign. Then, he attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison for one semester as an economics
Economics

File:Ballard Farmers' Market - vegetables.jpgEconomics is the Social sciences that studies the Production theory basics, Distribution , and Consumption of Good and Service ....
 graduate student before dropping out. He then returned to academia, enrolling in applied mathematics
Applied mathematics

Applied mathematics is a branch of mathematics that concerns itself with the mathematical techniques typically used in the application of mathematical knowledge to other domains....
 at Princeton University
Princeton University

Princeton University is a private university university located in Princeton, New Jersey, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League and has the largest per-student Financial endowment in the world....
 before shifting departments and receiving a Ph.D.
Ph.D.

Ph.D. or PHD may stand for:* Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group* Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip...
 in physics in 1976 under David Gross
David Gross

David Jonathan Gross is an United States particle physics and string theory. Along with Frank Wilczek and David Politzer, he was awarded the 2004 Nobel Prize in Physics for his discovery of asymptotic freedom....
, the 2004 Nobel laureate in Physics
Physics

Physics is the natural science which examines basic concepts such as energy, force, and spacetime and all that derives from these, such as mass, charge, matter and its Motion ....
.

Academic career

After completing his PhD, he worked at Harvard University
Harvard University

Harvard University is a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Massachusetts, United States, and a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1636 by the colonial Massachusetts legislature, Harvard is the Colonial Colleges institution of higher learning in the United States....
 as a Junior Fellow and at Princeton as a professor. He was a Professor of Physics at Princeton University
Princeton University

Princeton University is a private university university located in Princeton, New Jersey, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League and has the largest per-student Financial endowment in the world....
 from 1980 to 1987. He also was briefly at Caltech
California Institute of Technology

The California Institute of Technology is a private university research university located in Pasadena, California, United States. Caltech maintains a strong emphasis on the natural sciences and engineering....
 for two years from 1999 to 2001. He is currently the Charles Simonyi
Charles Simonyi

Charles Simonyi is a Hungary computer software executive who, as head of Microsoft's application software group, oversaw the creation of Microsoft Office....
 Professor of Mathematical Physics at the Institute for Advanced Study
Institute for Advanced Study

The Institute for Advanced Study, located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States, is a center for theoretical research. The Institute is perhaps best known as the academic home of Albert Einstein, John von Neumann, and Kurt G?del, after their immigration to the United States....
 in Princeton, New Jersey
Princeton, New Jersey

Princeton, New Jersey is located in Mercer County, New Jersey, New Jersey, United States. Princeton University has been sited in the town since 1756....
.

Research and achievements

Witten has made extensive contributions to theoretical physics
Theoretical physics

Theoretical physics employs mathematical models and abstractions of physics in an attempt to explain experimental data taken of the natural world....
, in work that has spawned a large number of highly mathematical results. He has been active primarily in quantum field theory
Quantum field theory

Quantum field theory or QFT provides a theoretical framework for constructing quantum mechanics models of systems classically described by field or of Many-body problem....
 and string theory
String theory

String theory is a developing branch of theoretical physics that combines quantum mechanics and general relativity into a quantum gravity. The String s of string theory are one-dimensional oscillating lines, but they are no longer considered fundamental to the theory, which can be formulated in terms of points or surfaces too....
, and in related areas of topology
Topology

Topology is a major area of mathematics that has emerged through the development of concepts from geometry and set theory, such as those of space, dimension, shape, transformation and others....
 and geometry
Geometry

Geometry arose as the field of knowledge dealing with spatial relationships. Geometry was one of the two fields of pre-modern mathematics, the other being the study of numbers....
. His many contributions include a simplified proof of the positive energy theorem
Positive energy theorem

In general relativity, the positive energy theorem states that, assuming the energy conditions#Mathematical statement, the mass of an asymptotically flat spacetime is non-negative; furthermore, the mass is zero only for Minkowski spacetime....
 involving spinors in general relativity, his work relating supersymmetry
Supersymmetry

In particle physics, supersymmetry is a symmetry that relates elementary particles of one Spin to another particle that differs by half a unit of spin and are known as superpartners....
 and Morse theory
Morse theory

In differential topology, the techniques of Morse theory give a very direct way of analyzing the topological space of a manifold by studying differentiable functions on that manifold....
, his introduction of topological quantum field theory
Topological quantum field theory

A topological quantum field theory is a quantum field theory which computes topological invariants.Although TQFTs were invented by physicists, they are primarily of mathematical interest, being related to, among other things, knot theory and the theory of four-manifolds in algebraic topology, and to the theory of moduli spaces in algebraic...
 and his related work on mirror symmetry
Mirror symmetry

In physics and mathematics, mirror symmetry is a relation that can exist between two Calabi-Yau manifolds. It happens, usually for two such six-dimensional manifolds, that the shapes may look very different geometrically, but nevertheless they are equivalent if they are employed as hidden dimensions of string theory....
 and supersymmetric gauge theories
Gauge theory

In physics, gauge theory is a quantum field theory where the Lagrangian is invariant under certain transformations.The transformations form a Lie group which is referred to as the symmetry group or the gauge group of the theory....
, and his conjecture of the existence of M-theory
M-theory

In theoretical physics, M-theory is a new limit of string theory in which 11 dimensions of spacetime may be identified. Because the dimensionality exceeds the dimensionality of five superstring theories in 10 dimensions, it was originally believed that the 11-dimensional theory is more fundamental and unifies all string theories ....
.

Witten was awarded the Fields Medal
Fields Medal

The Fields Medal is a prize awarded to two, three, or four mathematicians not over 40 years of age at each International Congress of Mathematicians of the International Mathematical Union, a meeting that takes place every four years....
 by the International Mathematical Union
International Mathematical Union

The International Mathematical Union is an international non-governmental organization devoted to international cooperation in the field of mathematics....
 in 1990, becoming the first physicist to win the prize. Sir Michael Atiyah
Michael Atiyah

Sir Michael Francis Atiyah, Order of Merit , Fellow of the Royal Society, Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh is a United Kingdom mathematician, and one of the most influential mathematicians of the twentieth century....
 said of Witten, "Although he is definitely a physicist, his command of mathematics is rivaled by few mathematicians... Time and again he has surprised the mathematical community by a brilliant application of physical insight leading to new and deep mathematical theorems... he has made a profound impact on contemporary mathematics. In his hands physics is once again providing a rich source of inspiration and insight in mathematics." One such example of his impact on pure mathematics is his framework for understanding the Jones polynomial
Jones polynomial

In the mathematical field of knot theory, the Jones polynomial is a knot polynomial discovered by Vaughan Jones in 1983. Specifically, it is an knot invariant of an oriented knot or link which assigns to each oriented knot or link a Laurent polynomial in the variable with integer coefficients....
 using Chern-Simons theory
Chern-Simons theory

The Chern-Simons theory is a 3-dimensional topological quantum field theory of Topological quantum field theory#Schwarz-type TQFTs, developed by Shiing-Shen Chern and James Harris Simons....
. This had far reaching implications on low-dimensional topology
Low-dimensional topology

In mathematics, low-dimensional topology is the branch of topology that studies manifolds of four or fewer dimensions. Representative topics are the structure theory of 3-manifolds and 4-manifolds, knot theory, and braid groups....
 and led to quantum invariants such as the Witten-Reshetikhin-Turaev invariants.

He is currently working on the possible relations between Gauge theories and Geometric Langlands program
Langlands program

The Langlands program is a web of far-reaching and influential conjectures that connect number theory and the group representation of certain group ....
.

Personal life

He is married to Chiara Nappi
Chiara Nappi

.Chiara R. Nappi is an Italian physics and a professor of physics at Princeton University and at the Institute for Advanced Study. She has carried out research on various aspects of theoretical particle physics, mathematical physics and string theory....
, who is a professor of physics at Princeton University
Princeton University

Princeton University is a private university university located in Princeton, New Jersey, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League and has the largest per-student Financial endowment in the world....
 and they have two daughters. His brother Matt Witten
Matt Witten

Matthew Witten is a screenwriter for House and other shows. He also has written several mystery books, the first of which was Breakfast at Madeline's....
 is a screenwriter and producer for several popular TV series including L.A. Law
L.A. Law

L.A. Law is an United States television legal drama that ran from 1986 in television to 1994 in television. It was one of the most popular American television shows of the late 1980s and early 1990s....
 and House
House (TV series)

House, also known as House, M.D., is an American medical drama that debuted on the Fox Broadcasting Company network on November 16, 2004....
.

Awards and honors

Witten has been honored with numerous awards, including a MacArthur Grant (1982), a Fields Medal
Fields Medal

The Fields Medal is a prize awarded to two, three, or four mathematicians not over 40 years of age at each International Congress of Mathematicians of the International Mathematical Union, a meeting that takes place every four years....
 (1990), the National Medal of Science
National Medal of Science

The National Medal of Science is an honor bestowed by the President of the United States to individuals in science and engineering who have made important contributions to the advancement of knowledge in the fields of behavioral science and social sciences, biology, chemistry, engineering, mathematics and physics....
 (2002)National Science Foundation
National Science Foundation

The National Science Foundation is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering....
, Pythagoras Award (Croton, 2005), and the Crafoord Prize
Crafoord Prize

The annual Crafoord Prize is a science prize established in 1980 by Holger Crafoord, a Swedish industrialist, and his wife Anna-Greta Crafoord....
 (2008). Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI

Pope Benedict XVI is the List of popes and reigning Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the head of the Roman Catholic Church and, as such, monarch of the Vatican City....
 also appointed Witten as a member of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences
Pontifical Academy of Sciences

The Pontifical Academy of Sciences was founded by the Roman Catholic Church in 1936 under its current name by Pope Pius XI and is placed under the protection of the reigning Supreme Pontiff ....
 (2006). He also appeared in the list of TIME
Time (magazine)

Time is a weekly United States newsmagazine, similar to Newsweek and U.S. News & World Report. A European edition is published from London....
 magazine's 100 most influential people of 2004. In 2000, he was awarded the Nemmers Prize in Mathematics
Nemmers Prize in Mathematics

The Frederic Esser Nemmers Prize in Mathematics is awarded biennially from Northwestern University. It was initially endowed along with a companion prize, the Erwin Plein Nemmers Prize in Economics, as part of a $14 million donation from the Nemmers brothers....
.

Trivia

  • Witten has the highest h-index
    H-index

    The -index is an Index that quantifies both the actual scientific productivity and the apparent scientific impact of a scientist. The index is based on the set of the scientist's most cited papers and the number of citations that they have received in other people's publications....
     of any living physicist;
  • Witten was mentioned in a 1999 episode of the cartoon Futurama
    Futurama

    Futurama is an Animated cartoon United States Situation comedy created by Matt Groening, and developed by Groening and David X. Cohen for the Fox Broadcasting Company....
    ;
  • Witten was mentioned in the 2002 Angel
    Angel (TV series)

    Angel is an American television series, a spin-off of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer . The series was created by Buffys creator, Joss Whedon in collaboration with David Greenwalt, and first aired on October 5, 1999....
     episode "Supersymmetry
    Supersymmetry (Angel episode)

    "Supersymmetry" is episode 5 of season 4 in the television show Angel . Co-written by Elizabeth Craft and Sarah Fain and directed by Bill L....
    ";
  • Witten was mentioned in the comic Ex Machina
    Ex Machina (comics)

    Ex Machina is an USA creator ownership comic book ongoing series created by Brian K. Vaughan and Tony Harris , and published by DC Comics under the Wildstorm imprint....
    .
  • Witten was mentioned in the American television series Numb3rs
    NUMB3RS

    NUMB3RS is an American television show produced by brothers Ridley Scott and Tony Scott. It follows Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent Don Eppes and his mathematics genius brother, Charlie Eppes , who helps Don solve crimes for the FBI....
  • Witten is one of many physicists who has been dubbed the "new Einstein" by the media.


See also

  • Gromov-Witten invariant
    Gromov-Witten invariant

    In mathematics, specifically in symplectic topology and algebraic geometry, Gromov?Witten invariants are rational numbers that, in certain situations, count pseudoholomorphic curves meeting prescribed conditions in a given symplectic manifold....
  • Seiberg–Witten gauge theory
  • Seiberg–Witten invariant
    Seiberg–Witten invariant

    In mathematics, Seiberg?Witten invariants are invariants of compact smooth 4-manifolds introduced by , using the Seiberg-Witten theory studied by during their investigations of Seiberg-Witten gauge theory....
  • Vafa-Witten theorem
    Vafa-Witten theorem

    In theoretical physics, the Vafa-Witten theorem, named after Cumrun Vafa and Edward Witten, is a theorem that shows that vector-like global symmetry such as isospin and baryon number cannot be spontaneous symmetry breaking as long as the theta angle is zero....
  • Weinberg-Witten theorem
    Weinberg-Witten theorem

    In theoretical physics, the Weinberg?Witten theorem, proved by Steven Weinberg and Edward Witten, states that in all renormalizable Lorentz-invariant quantum field theories, massless particles with spin j greater than one cannot exist....
  • Wess-Zumino-Witten model
    Wess-Zumino-Witten model

    In theoretical physics and mathematics, the Wess-Zumino-Witten model, also called the Wess-Zumino-Novikov-Witten model, is a simple model of conformal field theory whose solutions are realized by affine Kac-Moody algebras....
  • Witten index
    Witten index

    In quantum field theory/statistical mechanics, the Witten index at the inverse temperature β is defined as a modification of the standard partition function:...


External links