AUC's student residences are located on the Carolina MacGillavrylaan in Amsterdam.
You might think that Carolina MacGillavry does not sound very Dutch, and be wondering if the street has been named after a foreign woman. But nothing could be further from the truth. Carolina Henriette MacGillavry (1904-1993) was born and raised in Amsterdam. She was associated with the city for much of her life, and died here at the age of 89. She was a prominent Dutch scientist who specialised in chemical crystallography. A special professor at the University of Amsterdam, she became, in 1950, the first woman to be named to the Royal Dutch Academy of Sciences.
Professor MacGillavry had a strong interest in collaboration with scientists from developing countries and when she passed away she bequeathed money to the Academy to be used for supporting young, talented scientists from the south. In accordance with Professor MacGillavry's wishes, the Carolina MacGillavry PhD Fellowship Programme was launched in 1998.
Professor MacGillavry is perhaps best known for the book she published in 1965 on Symmetry aspects of M.C. Escher's periodic drawings. She met the Dutch graphic artist in 1959, when he was still relatively unknown, and arranged for some of his lithographs to be exhibited at the International Union of Crystallography congress, where he also gave a lecture. She, perhaps more than anyone else, has been credited with building the bridge between Escher and the scientific community.
