Meet Maryna Viazovska, 2nd Woman ever to win Fields Medal

Video Description

Explore science like never before - accessible, thrilling, and packed with awe-inspiring moments. Fuel your curiosity with 100s of free, curated STEM audio shows . Download The Turing App on the Apple App Store, Google Play Store or listen at https://theturingapp.com/ TimeStamps 00:00 The Mystery of the Perfect Packing 01:48 The Mathematician from Kyiv 03:00 The Problem of Packing Spheres 06:31 The Breakthrough in 8D and 24D 07:38 Implications of Maryna Viazovska's work 10:01 The Woman Behind the Math What do oranges at a grocery store, quantum computing, and internet encryption all have in common? They’re connected by one of the most deceptively simple yet mathematically profound problems in history: how to pack spheres in the most efficient way possible. And the person who solved this centuries-old mystery in higher dimensions is Ukrainian mathematician Maryna Viazovska. This video is a detailed biography of Maryna Viazovska and a deep dive into the stunning mathematical breakthrough that earned her the Fields Medal—only the second woman in history to receive the honor. Her journey from Kyiv schoolgirl to global mathematical icon is one of perseverance, elegance, and genius. The puzzle at the heart of this story dates back to Johannes Kepler in the 1600s, who guessed that pyramid-style packing—like greengrocers stacking oranges—is the most efficient arrangement of spheres in three dimensions. Proving that hunch took until 1998. But higher dimensions, like 8D and 24D, remained unsolved… until Maryna cracked them. Using tools from Fourier analysis and modular forms, Viazovska constructed a mathematical function so elegant and powerful that it solved the packing problem in 8 dimensions (E8 lattice) and, in collaboration with others, in 24 dimensions (Leech lattice) shortly after. Her proof is as concise as it is revolutionary—achieving in a few pages what had eluded generations of mathematicians. Why does this matter? Because sphere packing isn’t just theoretical. It shapes the way we compress and transmit data, helps design error-correcting codes for digital communication, strengthens cryptographic systems, and even supports theories in quantum physics and string theory. Viazovska’s solution informs both the structure of data and the structure of the universe. We also explore the woman behind the math. Maryna, now based at EPFL in Switzerland, balanced academic brilliance with personal resilience—especially after the 2022 invasion of Ukraine deeply affected her family. Despite the upheaval, she continued her research, raising awareness and support for her home country. This video goes beyond the equations, offering a narrative of intellectual discovery and personal strength. Maryna Viazovska’s story is not just one of mathematical success—it’s a reminder that even the most abstract problems can have real-world implications, and that breakthroughs often come from unexpected places. From ancient conjectures to modern encryption, from oranges to quantum physics, this is the story of how one mathematician solved a problem that had stumped the world for 400 years—and how her solution might shape the next century of science and technology. Whether you're curious about higher-dimensional geometry, fascinated by women in STEM, or simply drawn to great minds solving great puzzles, this video is for you. Come discover how Maryna Viazovska transformed a stack of oranges into a milestone in mathematics. ----------------------------------------- Math Mavericks I The 2022 Fields Medal Winners Listen to all the episodes on The Turing App https://theturingapp.com/show_index/math-mavericks-i-the-2022-fields-medal-winners Every four years, the Fields Medal—the highest honor in mathematics—is awarded to a select group of mathematicians who have reshaped the field with groundbreaking discoveries. In 2022, four minds changed the way we see the world forever. From the hidden mathematics of chaos to the strangest prime number mysteries, their work touches everything—quantum computing, cybersecurity, disease modeling, and even how oranges are stacked. This series unveils the revolutionary ideas of Hugo Duminil-Copin, Maryna Viazovska, June Huh, and James Maynard—brilliant thinkers who cracked problems that had stumped mathematicians for decades. Whether it’s uncovering the tipping points that govern nature, solving a 400-year-old puzzle about sphere packing, rewriting the rules of combinatorics, or decoding prime number secrets, these Fields Medalists are changing the future. Prepare to have your mind blown—because math isn’t just numbers. It’s the hidden force behind everything. #MarynaViazovska #SpherePacking #FieldsMedal #MathematicalBreakthrough #womeninstem #WomenInMath