June 15, 1959 -
YoungJu Choie is a South Korean mathematician whose work covers number theory and modular forms. Choie has proved upper bounds on the first sign change of Fourier coefficients of cusp forms.
Graduating from Ewha Woman's University in 1982 and receiving her Doctorate at Temple University, Choie now works as a professor of mathematics at Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH).
Choie recently ran a 2021 campaign called “She Did It” which advocated for women scientists in Korea. In Choie’s early stages of mathematics, she faced shock and judgment for her identity as an Asian, woman mathematician, of which there were only five in Korea during the 1980s.
Choie became a Fellow of the American Mathematical Society (AMS) in 2013 due to her expansions on Jacobi forms. Choie has a lengthy list of achievements including editor of the International Journal of Number Theory, Editor-in-Chief of the Bulletin of the Korean Mathematical Society, and President of the society of Korean Women in Mathematical Sciences. Choie has also received many acclaimed titles such as "The best Journal Paper Award (2002)" from the Korean Mathematical Society, "The best woman Scientist of the year" award (2005) from the Ministry of Science and Technology, and "Amore-Pacific The best Women in Science and Technology" (2007), KOFWST (Korea Federation of Woman's Science and Technology Association). On top of this, Choie was also the first female mathematician to become a member of the Korean Academy of Science and Technology.