2,000 forint – Péter Lax

The Magyar Nemzeti Bank will launch a new collector coin series to focus attention on Wolf Prize winner mathematicians of Hungarian origin and their work. The first piece in the series will present Péter Lax and his work, who received one of the most prestigious international recognitions in mathematics, the Wolf Prize in Mathematics. The silver collector coin with a face value of 7,500 forints and its non-ferrous metal version of 2,000 forints was designed by applied artist Andrea Horváth. American mathematician Péter Lax of Hungarian descent was born in Budapest on 1 May 1926. The professor is primarily engaged in applied mathematics. From his areas of research, he focused on the theory of partial differential equations, the dynamics of fluids and computation theory. In 1987, he was awarded the Wolf Prize in Mathematics in recognition of his exceptional results achieved in the field of analysis and applied mathematics. In 2005, he received the Abel Prize, considered to be equal with the Nobel Prize itself, for his ground-breaking work in the application of differential equation theory in Information Technology. Currently living in the USA, Péter Lax earned his diploma at the University of New York and worked there most of his life. Several mathematicians of Hungarian descent helped him in his youth including Gábor Szegő, Pál Erdős and John von Neumann. In this period, Neumann dedicated his full mental capacity to the development of the electronic computer and the establishment of effective numeric methods. All this might have had a significant effect on Péter Lax’s work who became a researcher of equations describing wavelike motion. The primary role of the coins is to honour Péter Lax and to raise awareness with no role in cash circulation. The silver and non-ferrous metal coins have the same design, the only difference being their denominations.