Coralie Colmez is a French author and tutor in

mathematics Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...

and

mathematics education In contemporary education, mathematics education, known in Europe as the didactics or pedagogy of mathematics – is the practice of teaching, learning and carrying out scholarly research into the transfer of mathematical knowledge. Although rese ...

Early life and career

Coralie Colmez is the daughter of mathematicians Pierre Colmez and

Leila Schneps Leila Schneps is an American mathematician and fiction writer at the Centre national de la recherche scientifique working in number theory. Schneps has written general audience math books and, under the pen name Catherine Shaw, has written mathe ...

. Colmez was raised in Paris, France. After completing her secondary education in Paris, Colmez moved to the United Kingdom and attended

Gonville and Caius College Gonville and Caius College, often referred to simply as Caius ( ), is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1348, it is the fourth-oldest of the University of Cambridge's 31 colleges and one of th ...

of the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

under a Cambridge European Trust scholarship, completing a first-class

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

Mathematics Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...

and winning the Ryan Prize in Higher Mathematics.

Professional

Colmez worked for one year as a research assistant on

Carol Vorderman Carol Jean Vorderman, HonFIET (born 24 December 1960) is a Welsh media personality, best known for appearing on the game show ''Countdown'' for 26 years from 1982 until 2008, as a newspaper columnist and nominal author of educational and diet ...

's task force, commissioned by the UK government to study the state of

in the United Kingdom, and assisted with the presentation of the findings to the Joint Mathematics Council. She is now a co-director o
''unifrog''
an organization that helps students discover future career pathways, apprenticeships and university courses, and teachers track their progress.

Writing

With her mother, mathematician

, Colmez co-authored '' Math on Trial: How Numbers Get Used and Abused in the Courtroom''. This book, published in 2013 by Basic Books, targeted for a general audience, uses ten historical legal cases to show how mathematics, especially statistics, can affect the outcome of

criminal proceedings Criminal procedure is the adjudication process of the criminal law. While criminal procedure differs dramatically by jurisdiction, the process generally begins with a formal criminal charge with the person on trial either being free on bail or i ...

, especially when incorrectly applied or interpreted. In 2022 Coralie published The Irrational Diary of Clara Valentine, a YA novel which includes high level mathematical concepts with the aim to introduce them to younger readers.

Public speaking

Since the publication of ''Math on Trial'', Colmez has been an invited speaker at scientific education events in the UK. She has presented to the

Conway Hall Ethical Society The Conway Hall Ethical Society, formerly the South Place Ethical Society, based in London at Conway Hall, is thought to be the oldest surviving freethought organisation in the world and is the only remaining ethical society in the United Kin ...

, the Cambridge Centre for Sixth-Form Studies, several shows for Maths Inspiration, including one at the

, and the 2014 '' QED'' conference. She has appeared on BBC Radio 4's ''Today Programme'', discussing her book's subject of criminal trials in which math is used incorrectly or insufficiently, and on the BBC Radio 4 podcast, ''More or Less'', discussing the same topic in relation to the

Amanda Knox Amanda Marie Knox (born July 9, 1987) is an American author, activist, and journalist. She spent almost four years in an Italian prison following her wrongful conviction for the 2007 murder of Meredith Kercher, a fellow exchange student with ...

case.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Colmez, Coralie Living people British sceptics French mathematicians Mathematics education in the United Kingdom Science communicators Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century French non-fiction writers 21st-century French women writers