Ulla Irmeli Pursiheimo (born May 4, 1944)[1] is a Finnish mathematician who became the first female mathematics professor in Finland.[2][3] Her areas of interest in mathematics include mathematical optimization, control theory, search games, and later in her career mathematics education.[2][3]
Pursiheimo earned her doctorate from the University of Turku in 1971. Her dissertation, Optimization of Search With Constant Spreading Speed of Effort, was supervised by Olavi Hellman .[4] She became a full professor of mathematics at the University of Turku in 1974,[1] and retired to become a professor emerita in 1999.[2][3]