Terence Tao

Terence Tao, the first mathematics professor in UCLA history to win the prestigious Fields Medal, is the first scholar appointed to UCLA's James and Carol Collins Chair in the College of Letters and Science. Jim and Carol Collins gave the College a $1 million gift to endow this chair.Terence Tao won the Fields Medal, often described as the "Nobel Prize in mathematics," on Aug. 22, 2006, at the International Congress of Mathematicians in Madrid. In the 70 years the prize has been awarded by the International Mathematical Union, only 48 researchers have ever won it."Terry is like Mozart; mathematics just flows out of him," said John Garnett, professor and former chair of the mathematics department at UCLA. "Mathematicians with Terry's talent appear only once in a generation. He's an incredible talent and probably the best mathematician in the world right now