The Mathematical Association of America is pleased to announce that Stéphane Douady, Jacques Dumais, Christophe Golé, and Nancy Pick have been awarded the 2026 Euler Book Prize.
Euler Book Prize
Established in 2005 and first awarded in 2007 to honor the 300th birthday of Leonhard Euler, the Euler Book Prize recognizes authors of outstanding mathematics books that enhance public understanding and appreciation of the subject.
The prize celebrates excellence across a wide range of genres, including monographs, histories, biographies, fiction, poetry, essays, and interdisciplinary works. Eligible books must be published in English within five years of the award and are selected for their clarity, insight, and impact on a wide audience. Virginia and Paul Halmos generously support the prize.
The Mathematical Association of America is pleased to announce that Stéphane Douady, Jacques Dumais, Christophe Golé, and Nancy Pick have been awarded the 2026 Euler Book Prize.
About This Year's Recipients
Stéphane Douady, Jacques Dumais, Christophe Golé, and Nancy Pick are the recipients of the 2026 Euler Book Prize for their book Do Plants Know Math? Unwinding the Story of Plant Spirals, from Leonardo da Vinci to Now (Princeton University Press, 2024).
Drawing on their collective backgrounds in physics, biology, mathematics, and journalism, Douady, Dumais, Golé, and Pick have written a visually rich and intellectually engaging book that answers a deceptively simple question: do plants know math? Focusing on phyllotaxis and the Fibonacci series, with forays into logarithmic spirals, soap bubbles, fractals, and Japanese kirigami, the book traces the mathematical patterns found in plant spirals through centuries of scientific inquiry, from Leonardo da Vinci to Alan Turing.
Accessible to general readers and mathematically trained alike, Do Plants Know Math? includes Try Your Hand activities suitable for classrooms from K–12 through university level, making it as practical as it is engaging. It is the kind of book that changes the way you look at a garden.
Group response: “Above all, Do Plants Know Math? is a testament to the power of interdisciplinary problem-solving. It took all four of us to make this project happen: a physicist, a biologist, a journalist, and a mathematician.”
Learn more about MAA prizes and submit a nomination.
About MAA
The Mathematical Association of America is the world’s largest community of mathematicians, students, and enthusiasts. We accelerate our understanding of our world through mathematics because mathematics drives society and shapes our lives. Learn more at maa.org.