Outstanding Young Mathematician Recognised with Prestigious Hamilton Prize

Tiernan Brosnan, a student of the Department of Mathematics and Statistics was awarded the undergraduate Hamilton Prize in a ceremony that took place in the Royal Irish Academy on the 1^st of March. The Royal Irish Academy awards the prestigious undergraduate Hamilton Prize to the top mathematical students in their final year of study as nominated by their university.

The award ceremony was originally scheduled for 16 October 2022 to mark Hamilton Day. Hamilton Day commemorates the anniversary of famed Irish scientist William Rowan Hamilton’s discovery of quaternion algebra on 16 October 1843. 

Commenting on the award ceremony Dr Mary Canning, President of the Royal Irish Academy said: “The Hamilton Prize recognises these outstanding young mathematicians chosen in their penultimate year of studies in universities all around the island of Ireland. We celebrate Hamilton Day because Ireland has a rich history of scientific excellence, but through this prize we also look to the future. In honouring their academic excellence we hope to support and encourage the next generation of great Irish scientists. Although Hamilton Day was postponed from last year, we were very pleased to celebrate their achievements in person at a ceremony in the Academy, following their masterclass with Professor Wigderson.”

Also offering congratulations to Tiernan was Professor James Gleeson, Head of the Department of Mathematics and Statistics who added: “On behalf of the department, I’d like to congratulate Tiernan on winning the Hamilton Prize. The prize is named after one of Ireland’s most famous applied mathematicians, whose work is fundamental to many areas of theoretical physics, and it is fitting therefore that Tiernan is a student of the joint degree in Mathematics & Physics.”

A total of nine students were awarded the prize at the ceremony with each receiving a cash prize of €500, a certificate of achievement, and an invitation to an exclusive masterclass with the 2022 Hamilton Lecture speaker, Professor Avi Wigderson of the Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton.