Is it possible to turn a playdough bunny into a ball without tearing the playdough? The answer seems obvious, but what if the bunny is four-dimensional? Or not a bunny at all but rather an arbitrary geometric object? It turns out that one can answer such questions using mathematical methods, such as differential equations and transformation groups. The underlying theory is abstract and complicated, yet beautiful and fascinating. Artem Pulemotov studies and develops such theories in order to solve fundamental problems in geometry and related areas of mathematics. His career has taken him to many top-class institutions all over the world: he completed his Bachelor’s degree at Kyiv University (Ukraine), his Ph.D. at Cornell University (USA) and his post-doctoral training at the University of Chicago before arriving in Australia. Currently an associate professor at the University of Queensland, he has been actively involved in university governance as a member of the Academic Board and the Academic Board Standing Committee. Artem has participated in Mathematicians at Schools, BrisScience public lecture series, and several other activities aimed at promoting mathematics. He has won two awards for excellence in research at Cornell and two teaching awards at Cornell and the University of Queensland. Married to a professional composer, he has a strong interest in contemporary music.

Electorate: Oxley
MP: Milton Dick