Reflections on the death of the “Iranian numbers genius” in German media
The news of Maryam Mirzakhani's death was widely covered not only in Iran but also in international media. German media published the news of her death with praise for this mathematician. "Der Spiegel" and the newspaper "Süddeutsche" were among these media outlets.
The German-language website Deutsche Welle has referred to Maryam Mirzakhani as a “genius of numbers.” Deutsche Welle began its article with the news and cause of death of this prominent mathematician and then went on to discuss Mirzakhani’s life and scientific activities. The author of this article mentioned Mirzakhani’s valuable scientific award – the Fields Medal – which the mathematician received for her work in the field of symmetry of curved surfaces.
Part of the German Deutsche Welle article mentions a story from Stanford University - Mirzakhani's workplace - about how she worked: Mirzakhani would draw geometric shapes on paper and write mathematical formulas around them; for this reason, the mathematician's daughter called her mother's work "painting."
The website of the German newspaper “Die Welt” is another media outlet in the country that has covered Mirzakhani’s death. “Die Welt” began its article with the phrase “Stanford mourns the great scientist.” The media outlet also mentioned Mirzakhani’s “Nobel Prize in Mathematics” (Fields Medal) and that the British specialized journal “Nature” included the name of the late Iranian mathematician in its list of the top 10 researchers of the year in 2014.
The German website "Deutschlandfunk" also published a news item on the occasion of Mirzakhani's death, describing him as a "prominent Iranian mathematician" and describing Mirzakhani's life and scientific achievements.
" The sudden cessation of the legendary journey "
The website of the German magazine "Spiegel" refers to the "legendary journey" of Maryam Mirzakhani's life that "suddenly" came to a halt; it also mentions that when the Fields Medal was awarded in Seoul, South Korea, the audience applauded Maryam Mirzakhani the most.
In describing Mirzakhani's life and field of work, Der Spiegel quoted one of Mirzakhani's statements; a statement he had made in an interview about his work: "I don't lose my motivation easily. I am optimistic about solving problems." The German publication finally writes: He has now lost his battle with cancer.
The German newspaper “Süddeutsche” also began the news of Mirzakhani’s death by introducing her. It then referred to Mirzakhani’s field of activity: above all, abstract geometric spaces; the properties of lines, curves, and complex geometric drawings. The German newspaper emphasizes that Maryam Mirzakhani’s research areas are highly specialized and not well-known outside the circle of experts; at the same time, her achievements in this field are useful for many fields; fields such as theoretical physics, engineering, or cryptography.
The Süddeutsche Zeitung concluded its article with a quote from Stanford University President Mark Tse-Lewin: "Mary was taken from us too soon. But her influence will live on for thousands of women who were inspired by her to serve mathematics and science."
Maryam Mirzakhani was born on May 4, 1977 in Tehran. After completing her primary education, she entered Farzanegan High School in Tehran by participating in the first talent recruitment program. Mirzakhani continued her university education at the Faculty of Mathematics of Sharif University of Technology. After completing her undergraduate degree, she went to Harvard University and after receiving her doctorate with honors, she worked as a professor at the famous Princeton University. She has been teaching at Stanford University since 2008.
Mirzakhani had been suffering from breast cancer for a long time, and it was said that the disease had returned four times so far but had been controlled. Recently, however, the cancer had also spread to her bones. News of her hospitalization and worsening condition had been reported in the media in recent days.
Source: DW
