'Sugaku Seminar' July Issue Marks 777th Issue! Feature Includes 7 Mathematicians from a 100-Year-Old to Young Rising Stars [All About 7]

The monthly mathematics magazine 'Sugaku Seminar', first published in 1962 by Nippon Hyoron Sha Co., Ltd., will reach its 777th issue with the July issue released on Friday, June 12, 2026.

Sugaku Seminar July 2026 Issue

To commemorate the 777th issue, this edition features a special interview series titled 'Seven Mathematicians'. The feature includes seven mathematicians from different generations, starting with 100-year-old mathematician Shin Hitotsumatsu, who has been writing for the magazine since its first issue, to media-familiar Jin Akiyama, who laid the foundation for graph theory in Japan, Koki Taniyama of 'knot theory', and young rising stars like Hokuto Konno who researches 'gauge theory'.

This is a volume where readers can encounter the joy of mathematics through the mathematical lives each person has led.

<Mathematicians Featured in the Special Feature (Titles Omitted)>

・Shin Hitotsumatsu (100 years old / Professor Emeritus, Kyoto University; Honorary Chairman, Japan Mathematical Certification Association)

・Ryoshi Hotta (Professor Emeritus, Tohoku University and Okayama University of Science)

・Jin Akiyama (Professor Emeritus, Tokyo University of Science; Professor Emeritus, Tokai University)

・Koki Taniyama (Professor, Waseda University)

・Kiwamu Watanabe (Professor, Chuo University)

・Hokuto Konno (Associate Professor, University of Tokyo)

・Junnosuke Koizumi (Special Postdoctoral Researcher, RIKEN Center for Basic Science)

<Table of Contents>

777th Issue Commemorative Interview 'Seven Mathematicians'

・'Essential Singularity' Who Ran Through Four Eras……Shin Hitotsumatsu

・A 'Marked' Mathematician……Ryoshi Hotta

・The Reggae Mathematician Who Sowed the Seeds of Graph Theory in Japan……Jin Akiyama

・A Humorist Who Loves Mathematics……Koki Taniyama

・An Influencer Who Continues to Challenge Conjectures……Kiwamu Watanabe

・A Young Challenger to 4-Manifold Theory……Hokuto Konno

・A Versatile Problem Solver……Junnosuke Koizumi

・New Serial: Enjoy Instability!……Yasumasa Nishiura

・Keywords for Aspiring Modern Mathematicians / Characteristic Classes……Yoshitake Hashimoto

In addition, popular serials by Hiroshi Yuki and famous corners like 'Elegant Solutions Wanted' are also included.

<Profiles of the 'Seven Mathematicians'>

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Shin Hitotsumatsu

Born March 6, 1926 in Tokyo

1947: Graduated from the Department of Mathematics, Faculty of Science, University of Tokyo

1952: Assistant Professor, Faculty of Science, Rikkyo University

1954: Doctor of Science

1955: Assistant Professor, Faculty of Science, University of Tokyo

1962: Professor, Faculty of Science, Rikkyo University

1969: Professor, Research Institute for Mathematical Sciences, Kyoto University

1989: Retired from Kyoto University (Professor Emeritus), Professor, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Tokyo Denki University

2004: Retired from Tokyo Denki University

November 2006: Received the Order of the Sacred Treasure, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon

2015: Received the Publication Award from the Mathematical Society of Japan

Currently Professor Emeritus at Kyoto University

Specialty: Originally theory of functions of several complex variables, after 1960, computer science and numerical analysis

Books: 'Theory of Analytic Functions of Several Variables' (Baifukan), and many others

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Ryoshi Hotta

Born 1941 in Bizen City, Fukuoka Prefecture

1960: Graduated from Nada High School

1965: Graduated from the Department of Mathematics, Faculty of Science, University of Tokyo

1967: Completed Master's course, Graduate School of Science, University of Tokyo; Assistant, Faculty of Science, Osaka University

1970: Doctor of Science (Osaka University)

1971: Assistant Professor, Faculty of Science, Hiroshima University

1971-1973: Member, Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton

1979: Assistant Professor and Professor, Faculty of Science, Tohoku University

1996: Retired from Tohoku University (Professor Emeritus); Professor, Faculty of Science, Okayama University of Science

2007: Retired from Okayama University of Science

Currently Professor Emeritus at Tohoku University and Okayama University of Science

Specialty: Algebra

Books: 'Ten Lectures on Modules' (Asakura Shoten), and many others

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Jin Akiyama

Born October 12, 1946 in Tokyo

1969: Graduated from the Department of Applied Mathematics, Faculty of Science, Tokyo University of Science

1972: Completed Master's course in Mathematics, Graduate School of Science and Technology, Sophia University

1978-1979: Visiting Researcher, Department of Mathematics, University of Michigan

After serving as Assistant Professor in the Department of Basic Science, Nippon Medical School; Director of the Educational Development Research Institute, Tokai University; Director of the Center for Mathematics and Science Education, Tokyo University of Science; and Vice President (Special Appointment) of Tokyo University of Science, he is currently Professor Emeritus at Tokyo University of Science and Professor Emeritus at Tokai University.

2016: Received the Publication Award from the Mathematical Society of Japan

November 2017: Received Honorary Doctorate from Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo

June 2021: Received the Order of Christopher Columbus

November 2025: Received the Order of the Sacred Treasure, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon

Specialty: Graph theory, discrete geometry, polyhedra and polytopes

Books: 'There Is No 'End-of-Life Planning' Solution for Mathematicians' (Kodansha), and many others

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Koki Taniyama

Born 1963 in Tokyo

1981: Graduated from Tokyo Metropolitan Toyama High School

1987: Graduated from the Department of Mathematics, School of Education, Waseda University

1992: Completed doctoral course in Mathematics, Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Waseda University (withdrew); Doctor of Science; Assistant, School of Education, Waseda University

1993: Full-time Lecturer, Department of Mathematical Sciences, Faculty of Humanities and Sciences, Tokyo Woman's Christian University

1997: Associate Professor, Department of Mathematical Sciences, Faculty of Humanities and Sciences, Tokyo Woman's Christian University

2001: Associate Professor, Department of Mathematics, School of Education, Waseda University

2004: Professor, Department of Mathematics, School of Education, Waseda University

Currently Professor at the Faculty of Education and Integrated Arts and Sciences, Waseda University

Specialty: Topology, particularly knot theory and spatial graph theory

Books: 'Knot Theory: Vassiliev Invariants from a General Position Perspective' (Kyoritsu Shuppan)

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Kiwamu Watanabe

Born 1984 in Yokohama City

2002: Graduated from Yokohama Municipal Sakuragaoka High School

2006: Graduated from the Department of Mathematical Sciences, School of Science and Engineering, Waseda University

2008: Completed Master's course in Mathematical Sciences, Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Waseda University

2010: Completed Doctoral course in Mathematics and Applied Mathematics, Graduate School of Fundamental Science and Engineering, Waseda University; Doctor of Science

2012: Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Saitama University

2020: Associate Professor, Department of Mathematics, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Chuo University

Currently Professor, Department of Mathematics, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Chuo University

Specialty: Algebraic geometry

Books: 'If You Understand Numbers, You Understand the World! An Amazingly Great Picture Book of Numbers' (KADOKAWA)

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Hokuto Konno

Born 1991 in Tokyo

2010: Graduated from Waseda University Senior High School

2014: Graduated from the Department of Mathematics, School of Fundamental Science and Engineering, Waseda University

2016: Completed Master's course in Mathematical Sciences, Graduate School of Mathematical Sciences, University of Tokyo

2019: Completed Doctoral course in Mathematical Sciences, Graduate School of Mathematical Sciences, University of Tokyo; Doctor of Mathematical Sciences; Special Postdoctoral Researcher, RIKEN Center for Basic Science

April 2020: Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Mathematical Sciences, University of Tokyo

Currently Associate Professor, Graduate School of Mathematical Sciences, University of Tokyo

Specialty: Gauge theory, 4-manifold theory

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Junnosuke Koizumi

Born 1997 in Kanagawa