Los Angeles Times Book Prize
1 appearances
-
Edition 44 (2023) Winner
Eugenia Cheng
ユージェニア・チェン
Eugenia Cheng
Profile
- Gender
- Female
- Born
- 1976-08-01 （Hampshire, England）
- Nationality
- British
- Languages
- English
- Residence History
- Hampshire (born) → Sussex (moved at age 1) → Cambridge (education) → Sheffield (academic appointment) → Nice (academic appointment) → Chicago (School of the Art Institute of Chicago)
Career
- Occupations
- mathematician, educator, pianist, author
- Active Years
- 2002-
- Affiliations
- School of the Art Institute of Chicago (scientist-in-residence), University of Sheffield (former appointment), University of Chicago (former appointment), University of Nice Sophia Antipolis (former appointment)
- Influenced By
- Martin Hyland (doctoral advisor)
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roedean School | — | — | — | — | United Kingdom |
| University of Cambridge (Gonville and Caius College) | Mathematics | Department of Mathematics | PhD | 博士課程終了まで（〜2002） | United Kingdom |
| University of Cambridge | Mathematics | Department of Mathematics | BA | — | United Kingdom |
Roedean School
Country:
United Kingdom
Secondary school
University of Cambridge (Gonville and Caius College)
Mathematics
/ Department of Mathematics
Degree:
PhD
Period:
博士課程終了まで（〜2002）
Year of Graduation:
2002
Country:
United Kingdom
PhD thesis: Higher-dimensional category theory: opetopic foundations (2002)
University of Cambridge
Mathematics
/ Department of Mathematics
Degree:
BA
Year of Graduation:
1998
Country:
United Kingdom
Completed the Mathematical Tripos (undergraduate)
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | Sheila Mossman Memorial Award | — | — | Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music (ABRSM) | 受賞 |
| — | Brighton and Hove Arts Council Musician of the Year | — | — | Brighton and Hove Arts Council | 初代受賞者 |
| 2017 | Royal Society Insight Investment Science Book Prize (shortlisted) | Beyond Infinity | — | The Royal Society | ショートリスト |
| 2022 | Association of Women in Mathematics playing card (selected) | — | — | Association of Women in Mathematics | 選出 |
Sheila Mossman Memorial Award
Organization:
Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music (ABRSM)
Result:
受賞
Brighton and Hove Arts Council Musician of the Year
Organization:
Brighton and Hove Arts Council
Result:
初代受賞者
Royal Society Insight Investment Science Book Prize (shortlisted)
2017
Work:
Beyond Infinity
Organization:
The Royal Society
Result:
ショートリスト
Association of Women in Mathematics playing card (selected)
2022
Organization:
Association of Women in Mathematics
Result:
選出
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
How to Bake Pi
2015 popular mathematicsUses recipes and baking analogies to explain mathematical ideas to a general audience. Each chapter begins with a dessert recipe to illustrate parallels between cooking procedures and mathematical thinking.
making mathematics accessiblefood metaphorsmath education
Translations
- Translated into French
Beyond Infinity
2018 popular mathematics / set theoryExplains concepts of infinity and set theory (including Cantor's diagonal argument and Zeno's paradoxes) to lay readers using analogies and anecdotes.
infinityset theoryintuition-building
The Art of Logic in an Illogical World
2018 logic / popular philosophyUses logic to analyze real-world topics such as same-sex marriage, white privilege, and police brutality, explaining how to construct and evaluate arguments.
logicpublic argumentationcritical thinking
x+y: A Mathematician's Manifesto for Rethinking Gender
2020 social commentary / mathematicsAn essayistic work that uses mathematical thinking to challenge and rethink common assumptions about gender, employing statistics and logic.
gendermathematical thinkingsocial critique
Molly and the Mathematical Mysteries
2021 children's math fictionA children's book that introduces mathematical concepts through story.
educationstory-based math introduction
Bake Infinite Pie With X + Y
2022 children's educational picture bookUses illustrations and metaphors to present mathematical ideas to children. Illustrated by Amber Ren.
educationmetaphor and visualization
The Joy of Abstraction
2022 mathematical philosophy / abstractionEssays exploring the value of abstraction, category theory, and the pleasures of mathematical thinking.
abstractioncategory theory
Is Maths Real?
2023 philosophy of mathematicsDiscusses the reality of mathematics and the existence of mathematical concepts in an accessible way.
philosophy of mathematicsontological questions
Unequal
2025 social mathematics / popularAnalyzes social inequality from a mathematical perspective and explores when things don't add up (upcoming release).
inequalitymathematical analysis
Bibliography
- How to Bake Pi (2015)
- Beyond Infinity (2018)
- The Art of Logic in an Illogical World (2018/2019)
- x+y: A Mathematician's Manifesto for Rethinking Gender (2020)
- Molly and the Mathematical Mysteries (2021)
- Bake Infinite Pie With X + Y (2022)
- The Joy of Abstraction (2022)
- Is Maths Real? (2023)
- Unequal (expected 2025)
Translations of Works
- French translation of How to Bake Pi (2016)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- accessible, everyday metaphorseducational and conversationaluses humor and food analogies
- Recurring Motifs
- food and baking metaphorscategory theory and abstractionapplying logic to real-world issues
Health
-
Infertility (publicly discussed)記述は2024年のエッセイに関連Has discussed fertility issues publicly (2024 essay), affecting personal life and public commentary about childlessness.
Legacy
A prominent popularizer of mathematics — researcher, educator, and author — known for using food metaphors to reduce math anxiety and for bridging art and mathematics.
Academic Societies
- Association of Women in Mathematics (featured)
In Popular Culture
- Appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert (2015)
- Regular media appearances and columns (e.g., Wall Street Journal), podcasts and radio interviews
- Founded Liederstube in Chicago (contribution to art song community)
Trivia
- Known for explaining mathematics to lay audiences using baking and cooking metaphors.
- Also a concert pianist specializing in lieder and art song.
- Founded Liederstube in Chicago to present intimate art-song recitals.
- Beyond Infinity was shortlisted for the 2017 Royal Society Insight Investment Science Book Prize.