Lauren Williams

My name is Lauren Williams and I am a professor of mathematics at Harvard University. Before coming to Harvard in 2018, I was a faculty member at UC Berkeley for nine years. I received my PhD from MIT in 2005.

My main field of interest is algebraic combinatorics, but many of the problems I work on are inspired by physics - statistical physics, mirror symmetry, scattering amplitudes, and integrable systems. For example, some of my work uses the positive Grassmannian to understand soliton solutions to the KP equation, which in turn model shallow water waves (like beach waves).

In November 2022 I visited Leipzig for the first time, in order to give a colloquium and to visit the MPI. I enjoyed several lively math discussions, and was particularly charmed by the math library, with its espresso machine to lure you in, and the beautiful books on display - including Harry Potter, and Asterix and Obelix. I was happy to combine my Leipzig visit with a trip to Hamburg, where my sister Eleanor Frajka-Williams recently started a position as professor of experimental oceanography.