1917-

Norwegian-American Mathematician

In 1950, Atle Selberg received the Fields Medal for his generalizations of Viggo Brun's sieve methods, and for a proof relating to the Riemann zeta function. He is also noted for a proof of the prime number theorem, on which he worked with Paul Erdös (1913-1996).

Born on June 14, 1917, in Langeslund, Norway, Selberg was the son of Ole and Anna Skeie Selberg. Inspired by reading about the Indian mathematical prodigy Ramanujan as a child, he decided on a career in mathematics, and was further inspired by a lecture he heard at the International Mathematical Conference in Oslo in 1936. He performed his doctoral studies at the University of Oslo, where he earned his degree in 1943. A year earlier he had been appointed a resident fellow of the university, and would remain in that position for five years.

In 1947, Selberg emigrated to the United States...