Penn State mathematician Paul Baum named Atherton Professor
Paul Frank Baum, Evan Pugh Professor of Mathematics at Penn State, has been honored by Penn State with the title of Atherton Professor. The University created the Atherton Professorship to recognize the continuing high level of scholarly or creative activity Evan Pugh Professors may pursue after their retirement.
“Paul joined the faculty at Penn State in 1987. Over that time at Penn State and a career that has spanned six decades, he has made a tremendous impact, not only on our Penn State community, but on mathematics as whole,” said Mary Beth Williams, acting dean of the Eberly College of Science. “This is a well-deserved honor, and I am delighted that he will continue his scholarship and leadership in math as an Atherton Professor.”
The Evan Pugh Professorship is the highest distinction bestowed upon faculty by the University. Since the establishment of the designation in 1960, only 84 faculty members have been named as Evan Pugh Professors. The Atherton professorship recognizes emeritus Evan Pugh Professors for their exceptional record of research and creative accomplishment, teaching and learning, and service over the course of their careers, and allows for the continuation of these activities to the benefit of the University community.
“Paul Baum’s deep and elegant ideas have connected mathematical areas in a unique way and continue to spawn new mathematics more than 40 year later,” said Paul Milewski, head of the Department of Mathematics at Penn State. “His mentees speak of his generous, kind, supporting nature, and say he is gregarious and full of joy. We are fortunate that he is member of the Penn State community.”
Baum's work has had significant impact on a key field of mathematical study called K-Theory. Baum is known for formulating, jointly with Alain Connes of the Collège de France, the Baum-Connes conjecture — an idea that opened a critical avenue of research for mathematicians. The Baum-Connes conjecture is unusual in that it cuts across several different areas of mathematics, revealing connections between mathematical problems and issues that previously had appeared to be unrelated. Baum's ability to connect mathematical fields has helped advance research in disparate areas such as algebraic geometry, topology, and functional analysis. The Baum-Bott residue formula, the Baum-Fulton-MacPherson (Riemann-Roch) theorem, and the Baum-Douglas geometric realization of analytic K-homology are regarded as ground-breaking achievements in their respective fields.
Throughout his career, Baum has given numerous invited talks, distinguished lectures, and plenary addresses at universities and symposia across the United States and abroad. He has held visiting positions at several national and international academic institutions, including the Institut des Hautes Études Scientifiques — the premier French institute supporting research in mathematics and theoretical physics — and the Institute for Advanced Study — the academic home of Albert Einstein and one of the world's leading centers for theoretical research and intellectual inquiry.
Baum was elected fellow of the American Mathematical Society in 2012. In 2012, Baum was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from the Australian National University. He received the degree during a December 2012 ceremony at which he gave an address about the value of perseverance. The Australian National University sponsored a concurrent three-day "Baum Fest" featuring lectures by mathematicians who are currently developing Baum's ideas. In 2011, he received the degree of Doctor of Humane Letters, honoris causa, from the Board of Regents at the University of Colorado in Boulder, "in recognition of his powerful, elegant, and lasting contributions to the field of mathematics."
Special scientific meetings were also held in honor of his 60th, 70th, and 80th birthday, including at University of Colorado, Boulder, in 1996, the Polish Academy of Sciences in Warsaw in 2007, and the Fields Institute in Toronto in 2016.
Before joining the Penn State Department of Mathematics in 1987, Baum was a faculty member at Brown University and Princeton University. He received a Ph.D. in mathematics from Princeton in 1963, and an A.B. degree, summa cum laude, from Harvard College in 1958.
About the Atherton Professorship
The Atherton Professorship, under the sponsorship of the Office of the Provost and the administration of the Office of the Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs, invites applications for membership from Penn State Evan Pugh Professors who are retiring from the University and who wish to continue a high level of engagement as an emeritus faculty member.
Atherton Professors typically engage in the pursuit of scholarly or creative activities, leadership, or outreach in one or more of the following ways:
- Obtaining external funding to support ongoing research;
- Current and future publications of research papers and/or books;
- Leadership in learned societies and/or scholarly journals;
- Solicited lectures, performances, or exhibits.
Selection as an Atherton Professor is for an initial term of three years with the possibility of renewal. Atherton Professors may negotiate to receive support from their units such as funding, office space, or administrative support but do not retain any funding or privileges associated with their Evan Pugh Professorship. Atherton Professors may petition the Graduate School to retain their graduate faculty status during the term of their appointment as an Atherton Professor.