Raman Parimala
A world renowned and eminent Mathematician who has made significant contributions to the field of algebra.
Featuring artwork by Harsho Mohan and words by Dr. Sumbul Jawed Khan, Sci-Illustrate Stories. Set in motion by Dr. Radhika Patnala.
India has a long and rich history of contributions to Mathematics going all the way back to the1200 BCE. The decimal system was invented in India; Indians have made early contribution to the study of the concept of zero, negative numbers, algebra, geometry and arithmetic. But if you think about all the famous Indian mathematicians- Aryabhatta (476–550 CE), or Bhaskara (1114–1185 CE), or Srinivasa Ramanujan (1887 –1920), or Harish Chandra (1923–1983), you realize that all of them were men! Indian women mathematicians came into prominence only in the 20th century and are still not that many! Albeit the list is growing. Among these women Raman Parimala (1948- present) stands out as one who made significant contributions in the field of algebra and is an inspiring figure for women aspiring to make a career in mathematics.
Early life- A liberal education and supportive family
Raman Dummi Parimala was born on November 21st, 1948, in Mayiladuthurai, Nagapattinam district of Tamil Nadu, India. Raman grew in an encouraging and progressive household. Her father was a professor of English Literature and encouraged Raman to pursue her interests and her mother was a constant pillar of support for the family.
Raman attended the Saradha Vidyalaya Girls’ High School at Madras (now Chennai), and showed a natural aptitude for mathematics from an early age. She was certain that she wanted to pursue higher studies in mathematics and expressed her desire to her father after high school. At a time when females were not supposed to have serious careers (other than medicine or teaching), her father completely supported her and wanted her to excel in what she was good at.
Finding beauty and purpose in Mathematics
Raman joined the Stella Maris College for B.Sc. and this was a rewarding time for her, where she received sound education and encouragement from the faculty. After finishing M.Sc. in 1970 from Stella Maris College, Raman started thinking of getting a teaching position at the same institution, just like many of her senior colleagues did. However, one of her professors Ms. Thangamani strongly discouraged this, and even went out to stop the management from hiring Raman, as she saw tremendous potential in her and wanted Raman to achieve much more. It is perhaps because of events like these that in one of her interviews later in life, Raman described her journey in the following words:
“To sum up, my becoming a career mathematician was a consequence of a series of accidents.”
Wanting to stay in Chennai, Raman initially joined the Ramanujan Institute of University of Madras to carry out her research. Her one-year stint at the institute was very fruitful, after which she joined the Professor Sridharan’s lab at the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), Mumbai. She graduated with a Ph.D. degree in 1976, with her thesis ‘Projective modules over polynomial rings over division rings’. She got a faculty position at TIFR right after her Ph.D., however she took leave as she got married around the same time
Raman moved to Dar-es-Salaam in Tanzania with her husband after the wedding, where he was posted as the Chief internal auditor of the Board of Internal Trade. Unusual for the time, her husband was extremely supportive of Raman’s career decisions. So much so, that upon realizing that Raman will not have any career prospects in Tanzania, he promptly left his job, and was ready to go wherever she wanted. Raman joined ETH, University of Lausanne, Zurich, Switzerland, for her postdoctoral research. Her husband accompanied her during this time. It was a defining moment as it cemented Raman’s career path in Mathematics.
She returned to TIFR, and resumed her position as a professor. After many years of research Raman moved to Emory University in Georgia, Atlanta, USA, as a professor of Mathematics in 2005. Both personal and professional reasons were behind this decision, as in addition to being closer to her son Sridhar who works in New York, Emory University also gave her the opportunity to flourish as an educator. She is fond of teaching and tries to elicit an interest in mathematics in young minds, and wants them to see the beauty of mathematical problems, just like she did when she started out.
“Math has the beauty of poetry, its abstractions are combined with perfect rigor.”
Awards and accolades
Raman has made outstanding contributions to algebra using tools of number theory, algebraic geometry, and topology. Among her notable contributions are publishing the first example of a nontrivial quadratic space over an affine plane. She has also worked on a solution for the second Serre conjecture.
Her excellence in algebra, has led to many awards and recognitions. She is a Fellow of all the three Indian science academies- Indian National Science Academy (New Delhi), Indian Academy of Science (Bangalore), and the National Academy of Sciences (Allahabad). She has won the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize, the highest science award in India, in 1987. Another feather in Raman’s cap was when she was chosen as one of the 11 Women in Science by the Govt. of India to be honored with a Chair in their names in 2020. Raman is the only living nominee in this list, and has joined the league of greats like- Kadambini Ganguly (Doctor), Anna Mani (Meteorologist), Janaki Ammal (Botanist), Rajeshwari Chatterjee (Engineer), Asima Chatterjee (Chemist), Kamal Ranadive (Biomedical Researcher), Bibha Chowdhuri (Physicist). Iravati Karve (Anthropologist), Darshan Ranganathan (Organic Chemist), and Archana Sharma (Cytogeneticist).
She is a well-known name internationally and is counted among the leading mathematicians of today. She received one of the highest global honors in her field when she was selected the plenary speaker for the 2010 International Congress of Mathematicians, which is organized every 4 years. She was also selected as the Emmy Noether Lecturer in 2013 given by the Association for Women in Math (AWM) and the Fellow of American Mathematical Society (AMS) in 2013. She is also a recipient of The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS) prize for mathematics in 2005.
As an eminent researcher and a motivating educator, Raman is an inspirational figure for people, especially girls, aspiring to have a career in mathematics.
“It is a world of ‘make-believe’, with great excitement from time to time. I only wish I had the lucidity of my father to convey to the outside world the immense beauty of mathematics!”
Timeline:
1948- Born in Tamil Nadu, India
1968- Graduated with B.Sc. from Stella Maris College, Madras University
1970- Received M.Sc. from Stella Maris College, Madras University
1976- Ph.D. from TIFR, Mumbai
1976- Faculty position at TIFR, Mumbai
1987- Received the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology
2005- Appointed Professor of Mathematics at Emory University
2010- Selected plenary speaker at the International Congress of Mathematicians
References:
About the author:
DR. SUMBUL JAWED KHAN
Content Editor,Women In Science, Sci-Illustrate Stories.
Dr. Khan received her Ph. D. in Biological Sciences and Bioengineering from the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, where she studied the role of microenvironment in cancer progression and tumor formation. During her post-doctoral research at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Dr. Khan investigated the gene regulatory networks that are important for tissue regeneration after damage or wounding. Dr. Khan is committed to science outreach activities, to make scientific research understandable and relatable to the non-scientific community. She believes it is essential to inspire young people to apply scientific methods to tackle the current challenges faced by humanity.
About the artist:
HARSHO MOHAN CHATTORAJ
Contributing Artist, Sci-Illustrate stories
Harsho Mohan Chattoraj is a graphic novelist and illustrator based in Kolkata, India. He’s worked in the comic medium for fifteen years, on individual projects and for clients in India, UK, Australia and the US. Some of his recent graphic novels include ‘ Ghosts of Kingdoms Past’, ‘Destiny Awakes’, ‘Pagla Shaib’s Grave’, ‘Hyderabad Graphic Novel’ and ‘Kolkata Kaleidoscope’. Harsho also has worked as a journalist, visualizer, storyboard artist, voice-over artist and promo producer, but has always been a fan of comics since his first dosage of ‘Asterix’ at the wee age of five.
About this series:
These are stories I wish I knew when I was growing up.
There are the stories of persistence, ingenuity, calibre, scientific achievement against all odds.
These are the stories of Indian women who were the pioneers of Science in India.
These are stories of lives that must be remembered and cherished.
Sci-Illustrate stories is proud to add a new chapter in our WIS series where through the words of the sci-illustrate team, complimented by the artwork of a very talented Indian artist Arghya Manna, we will be revisiting and highlighting the lives of some incredible Indian women in science.
— Dr. Radhika Patnala, Series Director
