John Griggs Thompson

views updated

John Griggs Thompson

1932-

American mathematician who received his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago in 1959. He taught at Harvard University, the University of Chicago, and Cambridge University. He was awarded the Fields Medal in 1970 for his work in finite group theory and non-Abelian finite simple groups. His later research interests centered on coding theory and Galois groups. He was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in the United States and the Royal Society of London.

More From encyclopedia.com