Fields Medals 1970

Alan BAKER

born August 19, 1939 London
Cambridge University

Generalized the Gelfond-Schneider theorem (the solution to Hilbert's seventh problem). From this work he generated transcendental numbers not previously identified.

Heisuke HIRONAKA

born April 9, 1931, Yamaguchi-ken, Japan
Harvard University

Generalized work of Zariski who had proved for dimension <=3 the theorem concerning the resolution of singularities on an algebraic variety. Hironaka proved the results in any dimension.

Serge NOVIKOV

born March 20, 1938, Gorki, USSR
Belorusskii University

Made important advances in topology, the most well-known being his proof of the topological invariance of the Pontrjagin classes of the differentiable manifold. His work included a study of the cohomology and homotopy of Thom spaces.

John Griggs THOMPSON

born October 13, 1932, Kansas, USA
University of Chicago

Proved jointly with W. Feit that all non-cyclic finite simple groups have even order. The extension of this work by Thompson determined the minimal simple finite groups, that is, the simple finite groups whose proper subgroups are solvable.

This document has been reproduced from

Albers, Donald J.; Alexanderson, G. L.; Reid, Constance:
International mathematical congresses. An illustrated history 1893 - 1986
Rev. ed. including ICM 1986. Springer-Verlag, New York, 1986

with friendly permission from Springer Verlag