Michael Artin
Ideas connecting algebra and geometry
Michael Artin is an American mathematician, born in Hamburg in 1934, and the son of mathematician Emil Artin. He studied at Princeton and Harvard before joining the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1963.
His research has been fundamental to algebraic geometry. Artin approximation, algebraic spaces and work in noncommutative algebra opened new connections between equations and geometric structures.
His textbook Algebra and his teaching have influenced mathematical education. He received the Wolf Prize in 2013. Artin’s career combines deep theoretical investigation with the work of passing abstract ideas to new generations of mathematicians.