G4G's Virtual Celebration of Mind | February 2026

Mathematics, belonging and names

Attributing mathematical results to their creators, or honouring mathematicians by giving their names to buildings, institutions or teaching rooms, is a way to honour significant mathematicians of the past.  But this can give a misleading impression regarding the present-day diversity of mathematics and impact on some mathematicians’ sense of belonging to our community.  I will present some personal thoughts, and hope to encourage discussion.

Tony Mann is director of the Greenwich Maths Centre, University of Greenwich. He worked as a software engineer before joining the University of Greenwich, where he now teaches mathematics.  He is a past President of the British Society for the History of Mathematics, and serves on committees of the Institute of Mathematics and its Applications and the London Mathematical Society.