March 24, 2020: Furstenberg *58 Shares the Abel Prize; Taiclet *84 To Lead Lockheed Martin

Mathematician Hillel Furstenberg *58 shared this year’s Abel Prize, the mathematics equivalent of a Nobel, for his pioneering work in probability. — The New York Times
 
University of Michigan president Mark Schlissel ’79 found his background as a medical doctor useful when making tough decisions about the university’s coronavirus response. — The Detroit Free Press
 
The coronavirus shutdown was especially hard for University of Dayton president Eric Spina *88 because the school lost a shot at an NCAA men’s basketball championship. — The Buffalo News
 
Testing as many people as possible for COVID-19 would give public-health officials the best chance for relaxing social-isolation requirements and sending people back to work, according to an opinion column by Gordon Douglas ’55, Princeton researcher Tim Searchinger, and Anthony LaMantia. — The Washington Post
More at PAW Online: An interview with vaccine expert Gordon Douglas ’55

Governors, mayors, business owners, university presidents, and others have provided admirable leadership in the absence of federal guidance on coronavirus, New America CEO Anne-Marie Slaughter ’80 writes in a recent opinion column. — The New York Times

James Taiclet *84, an Air Force veteran and Woodrow Wilson School graduate, will be the new CEO of Lockheed Martin, taking over from outgoing leader Marillyn Hewson. — CNBC
 

“In China, we rarely receive clear programs or problems to solve. Instead, we have to ask a lot of questions. China is reinventing what a theater is, and what a museum is. We are part of that process.”

— Architect Huang Wenjing *99 on the role she and her partner, Li Hu, are playing in the rapidly evolving design world in China. Read more in Surface magazine.

Harvard professor Lizabeth Cohen ’73’s book about urban renewal was named as one of two winners of the Bancroft Prize in American history and diplomacy. Cohen also received the prize in 1991. — The New York Times
 
Blaine Brownell ’92 was selected to become the new director of the UNC Charlotte School of Architecture. — Archinect
 
Education activist Elisha Smith Arrillaga *09 is concerned that the most vulnerable students, including those with disabilities, will be underserved by the virtual learning that is being employed due to the coronavirus. — The Los Angeles Times
 
Artist Frank Stella ’58’s new show displays his longtime interest in stellar geometry. — T Magazine