New Delhi, January 2: The Mathematical Sciences Foundation kicked off a three-day international conference today on ‘Mathematics In The Twentieth Century’ in commemoration of the birth centenary of French mathematician Andre Weil.

‘‘The purpose of this conference is to take stock of all developments that have taken place in the mathematical world in the twentieth century, and at the same time predict what is to come...All this is done, keeping in view Weil’s contribution to mathematics. We have invited speakers from all over the world who have worked with Weil’s ideas,’’ says professor Dinesh Singh, who is one of the organisers.

The conference — which has speakers from France, China and Canada among other countries — hopes to span a host of topics related to mathematics. Among the topics included, which include both pure and applied maths, a lecture on women and mathematics in the twentieth century will also be delivered by Professor Marie Francoise Roy from University de Rennes, France.

The Mathematical Sciences Foundation is a group comprising mathematicians, physicists and economists.