The Niels Henrik Abel Memorial Fund was established by the Norwegian
government on January 1. 2002. The main objective is to honor the great
Norwegian mathematician Niels Henrik Abel by awarding an international
prize for outstanding scientific work in the field of mathematics. The prize
shall contribute towards raising the status of mathematics in society and stimulate
the interest for science among school children and students. In keeping
with this objective the board of the Abel fund has decided to finance one
or two Abel Symposia each year. The topic may be selected broadly in the
area of pure and applied mathematics. The Symposia should be at the highest
international level, and serve to build bridges between the national and
international research communities. The Norwegian Mathematical Society is
responsible for the events. It has also been decided that the contributions from
these Symposia should be presented in a series of proceedings, and Springer
Verlag has enthusiastically agreed to publish the series. The board of the Niels
Henrik Abel Memorial Fund is confident that the series will be a valuable contribution
to the mathematical literature.