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Erik Demaine

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description Erik Demaine Overview

Erik Demaine is a computer scientist at MIT who works in computational geometry, algorithms, and the mathematics of origami. He joined MIT as a faculty member at age 20, making him the youngest professor in the institution's history at that time. Demaine has researched the computational complexity of folding problems and has worked on topics including data structures, graph algorithms, and recreational mathematics.

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How old was Erik Demaine when he became an MIT professor?

Erik Demaine joined MIT as a faculty member at age 20, making him the youngest professor in the institution's history at that time. He had already completed his PhD at the University of Waterloo before joining MIT.

What is Erik Demaine's fold-and-cut theorem?

Demaine and collaborators proved that any shape with straight sides can be cut from a single sheet of paper with one straight cut, given the right sequence of folds. This 'fold-and-cut theorem' solved a problem that had been informally explored since the 18th century.

Where did Erik Demaine get his PhD?

Demaine earned his PhD from the University of Waterloo in Canada, with a dissertation focused on computational geometry and folding algorithms. His father, Martin Demaine, was also involved in much of his early research collaboration.

What other areas does Erik Demaine research besides origami?

Demaine's work spans computational geometry, algorithm design, data structures, graph theory, and recreational mathematics. He has also explored the mathematics of glassblowing and has collaborated frequently with his father, Martin Demaine, an artist-in-residence at MIT.