John Mighton

John Mighton (Playwright), OC is a Canadian author and mathematician. He is the founder of JUMP (Junior Undiscovered Math Prodigies), a charitable organization that works to educate students in mathematics. He is the author of The Myth of Ability (2003) and The End of Ignorance (2007). Mighton is also a playwright, and has been the recipient of two Governor General Awards for his plays, which include Possible Worlds, The Little Years, Body & Soul, Scientific Americans, A Short History of Night, and Half Life. He has also been the recipient of the prestigious Siminovitch Prize in Theatre for playwriting. Mighton also advised Gus Van Sant, Matt Damon, and Ben Affleck on the script for Good Will Hunting; and as an actor in the film, his one major line is a reference to his main idea in The Myth of Ability: that most people never get a chance because a teacher doesn't take the time to show them how to learn.
 
Mighton completed a Ph.D. in mathematics at the University of Toronto and was awarded an NSERC fellowship for postdoctoral research in knot and graph theory. He is currently a Fellow of the Fields Institute for Research in Mathematical Sciences and has also taught mathematics at the University of Toronto. Dr. Mighton also lectured in philosophy at McMaster University, where he received a Masters in philosophy.
 
In 2004, Mighton was elected as a Fellow of Ashoka in recognition for his work founding JUMP. In 2010, he was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada.