Iran VP Pays Homage to Late Math Genius Mirzakhani

Iranian Vice-President for Science and Technology Sorena Sattari has written a note commemorating Iranian mathematical genius Maryam Mirzakhani, who died of cancer on July 15, 2017. The following are excerpts from the statement.

* I remember, around this time back in 2014, we heard that Maryam Mirzakhani, our old classmate at college, had won the prestigious Fields Medal. This is a very important award and experts say it is equal, in value, to a Nobel Prize for Math.

* We became very happy and felt proud. Especially old and new students at Sharif University of Technology took pride in her achievement and congratulated their friends and classmates from the bottom of their hearts. And I, not as the vice president, but as a Sharif University alumnus, wrote a letter and thanked Maryam Mirzakhani for bringing honour upon Iran.

* All of us knew that she was a serious and wise girl and spent all her time studying and working on complicated equations. A few years later, we were so happy to find out she had survived that bus accident, but felt so sad for the other folks who lost their lives in that accident. And now we realized that she succumbed to cancer. Well, everybody will die one day. “From God we are, and to Him we shall return.”

* During her short life, Maryam Mirzakhani brought honour upon her country while she herself was among the top mathematicians in the world. The news of her death saddened us all. I saw that all Iranians were sorrowful.

* We pay tribute to this renowned Iranian scientist in recognition of her scientific services and pray for her. May her soul rest in peace. I express condolences to all Iranians, especially the country’s scientific community, on her demise and ask God Almighty to grant her family, spouse and child patience.