Women in Science Profiles
Dr. Barbara Drinovec Drnovsek
There was never any doubt about my favourite school subject. I liked mathematics more than anything else and after secondary school I did not have to think twice to find the right faculty for me. After I had finished my studies in theoretical mathematics, I became a young researcher at the Institute for Mathematics, Physics and Mechanics. The next important step in my life was finishing my MSc degree. After that I stayed at home for a year and laid mathematics aside in order to devote my time entirely to my daughter. Later I became an Assistant at the Faculty of Mathematics and Physics in Ljubljana and started working on my PhD thesis. Two years after my second daughter was born, I have finished my PhD degree.
At present I work at the Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, at the Faculty of Education and at the Institute for Mathematics, Physics and Mechanics. I devote most of my working time to teaching. In contrast to research work, success in teaching is usually proportional to the time and effort you invest in it. In mathematical research, however, this is not necessarily so.
My research work is concerned with complex analysis. I study complex analytic subsets in complex spaces. I am a member of the group Analysis and Geometry at the Institute for Mathematics, Physics and Mechanics. Mathematical research is usually carried out individually and articles with more than three authors are more of an exception than a rule. We present our findings to our colleagues at seminars. These are often attended by researchers from abroad who then convey their latest research results to others. Individual achievements are presented at invited lectures at foreign universities. In theoretical mathematics personal contact is the motive power of research – just like a good library, a computer, a pen and a piece of paper.