Ruth Lyttle Satter Prize in Mathematics

The Ruth Lyttle Satter Prize in Mathematics, also called the Satter Prize, is one of twenty-one prizes given out by the American Mathematical Society (AMS).^[1] It is presented biennially in recognition of an outstanding contribution to mathematics research by a woman in the previous six years.^[2] The award was funded in 1990 using a donation from Joan Birman, in memory of her sister, Ruth Lyttle Satter,^[3] who worked primarily in biological sciences, and was a proponent for equal opportunities for women in science.^[4] First awarded in 1991, the award is intended to "honor [Satter's] commitment to research and to encourage women in science".^[5] The winner is selected by the council of the AMS, based on the recommendation of a selection committee.^[5] The prize is awarded at the Joint Mathematics Meetings during odd numbered years, and has always carried a modest cash reward. Since 2003, the prize has been $5,000,^[5][6] while from 1997 to 2001, the prize came with $1,200,^[7][8] and $4,000 prior to that.^[9] If a joint award is given, the prize money is split between the recipients.^[7]

Dusa McDuff was the first recipient of the award, for her work on symplectic geometry.^[10] A joint award was given for the first time in 2001, when Karen E. Smith and Sijue Wu shared the award.^[7] The 2013 prize winner was Maryam Mirzakhani, who, the following year, became the first woman to be awarded the Fields Medal, which is considered to be the highest honor a mathematician can receive.^[11][12] She won both awards for her work on "the geometry of Riemann surfaces and their moduli spaces".^[13] The most recent winner is Ana Caraiani, who was awarded the prize in 2025 "for contributions to arithmetic geometry and number theory: in particular, the Langlands program.".^[14]