Birth of a Theorem

A passionate story of inspiration, obsession and partnership, as one of the greatest mathematical minds takes us on an imaginative journey through the discovery of a new theorem.

How does a genius see the world? Where and how does inspiration strike? Blending science with history, biography with myth, the author conjures up an inimitable cast: the omnipresent Einstein, mad genius Kurt Godel, and Villani's personal hero, John Nash.

“This man could plainly do for mathematics what Brian Cox has done for physics” — Sunday Times

How does a genius see the world? Where and how does inspiration strike?

Cédric Villani takes us on a mesmerising adventure as he wrestles with the Boltzmann equation – a new theorem that will eventually win him the most coveted prize in mathematics and a place in the mathematical history books. Along the way he encounters obstacles and setbacks, losses of faith and even brushes with madness.

His story is one of courage and partnership, doubt and anxiety, elation and despair. Of ordinary family life blurring with the abstract world of mathematical physics, of theories and equations that haunt your dreams and seeking the elusive inspiration found only in a locked, darkened room.

Blending science with history, biography with myth, Villani conjures up an inimitable cast: the omnipresent Einstein, mad genius Kurt Godel, and Villani’s personal hero, John Nash.

Step inside the magical world of Cédric Villani…