Paul Cohen

Paul J. Cohen
Born(1934-04-02)April 2, 1934
DiedMarch 23, 2007(2007-03-23) (aged 72)
Alma materUniversity of Chicago (MS, PhD)
Known forCohen forcing
Continuum hypothesis
AwardsBôcher Prize (1964)
Fields Medal (1966)
National Medal of Science (1967)
Scientific career
FieldsMathematics
InstitutionsStanford University
ThesisTopics in the Theory of Uniqueness of Trigonometrical Series (1958)
Doctoral advisorAntoni Zygmund
Doctoral studentsPeter Sarnak

Paul Joseph Cohen (April 2, 1934 – March 23, 2007) was an American mathematician, best known for his proofs that the continuum hypothesis and the axiom of choice are independent from Zermelo–Fraenkel set theory, for which he was awarded a Fields Medal.