American accepts Abel Prize for mathematics

American John Tate has accepted Norway's 6 million kroner ($900,000) Abel Prize for mathematics for his role as "a prime architect" of number theory.

Tate received the award from King Harald V at a ceremony in Oslo Tuesday.

Kristian Seip, chairman of the prize committee, says Tate's "vast and lasting impact" on number theory has "left a conspicuous imprint on modern mathematics." Number theory investigates the basic properties of numbers and has been central to the development of modern computing technology.

Now retired, Tate has held professorships at Harvard University and the University of Texas in Austin.

The annual Abel Prize was created by the Norwegian government in 2003. The winner is selected by an international committee of five mathematicians.