Prize Is Awarded Every Three Years at the Joint Mathematics Meetings
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Ricci, Levi-Civita, and the Birth of General Relativity Reviewed by David E
BOOK REVIEW Einstein’s Italian Mathematicians: Ricci, Levi-Civita, and the Birth of General Relativity Reviewed by David E. Rowe Einstein’s Italian modern Italy. Nor does the author shy away from topics Mathematicians: like how Ricci developed his absolute differential calculus Ricci, Levi-Civita, and the as a generalization of E. B. Christoffel’s (1829–1900) work Birth of General Relativity on quadratic differential forms or why it served as a key By Judith R. Goodstein tool for Einstein in his efforts to generalize the special theory of relativity in order to incorporate gravitation. In This delightful little book re- like manner, she describes how Levi-Civita was able to sulted from the author’s long- give a clear geometric interpretation of curvature effects standing enchantment with Tul- in Einstein’s theory by appealing to his concept of parallel lio Levi-Civita (1873–1941), his displacement of vectors (see below). For these and other mentor Gregorio Ricci Curbastro topics, Goodstein draws on and cites a great deal of the (1853–1925), and the special AMS, 2018, 211 pp. 211 AMS, 2018, vast secondary literature produced in recent decades by the world that these and other Ital- “Einstein industry,” in particular the ongoing project that ian mathematicians occupied and helped to shape. The has produced the first 15 volumes of The Collected Papers importance of their work for Einstein’s general theory of of Albert Einstein [CPAE 1–15, 1987–2018]. relativity is one of the more celebrated topics in the history Her account proceeds in three parts spread out over of modern mathematical physics; this is told, for example, twelve chapters, the first seven of which cover episodes in [Pais 1982], the standard biography of Einstein. -
The Birth of Hyperbolic Geometry Carl Friederich Gauss
The Birth of Hyperbolic Geometry Carl Friederich Gauss • There is some evidence to suggest that Gauss began studying the problem of the fifth postulate as early as 1789, when he was 12. We know in letters that he had done substantial work of the course of many years: Carl Friederich Gauss • “On the supposition that Euclidean geometry is not valid, it is easy to show that similar figures do not exist; in that case, the angles of an equilateral triangle vary with the side in which I see no absurdity at all. The angle is a function of the side and the sides are functions of the angle, a function which, of course, at the same time involves a constant length. It seems somewhat of a paradox to say that a constant length could be given a priori as it were, but in this again I see nothing inconsistent. Indeed it would be desirable that Euclidean geometry were not valid, for then we should possess a general a priori standard of measure.“ – Letter to Gerling, 1816 Carl Friederich Gauss • "I am convinced more and more that the necessary truth of our geometry cannot be demonstrated, at least not by the human intellect to the human understanding. Perhaps in another world, we may gain other insights into the nature of space which at present are unattainable to us. Until then we must consider geometry as of equal rank not with arithmetic, which is purely a priori, but with mechanics.“ –Letter to Olbers, 1817 Carl Friederich Gauss • " There is no doubt that it can be rigorously established that the sum of the angles of a rectilinear triangle cannot exceed 180°. -
Algebraic Geometry of Topological Spaces I 3
ALGEBRAIC GEOMETRY OF TOPOLOGICAL SPACES I GUILLERMO CORTINAS˜ AND ANDREAS THOM Abstract. We use techniques from both real and complex algebraic geometry to study K- theoretic and related invariants of the algebra C(X) of continuous complex-valued functions on a compact Hausdorff topological space X. For example, we prove a parametrized version of a theorem of Joseph Gubeladze; we show that if M is a countable, abelian, cancella- tive, torsion-free, seminormal monoid, and X is contractible, then every finitely generated n projective module over C(X)[M] is free. The particular case M = N0 gives a parametrized version of the celebrated theorem proved independently by Daniel Quillen and Andrei Suslin that finitely generated projective modules over a polynomial ring over a field are free. The conjecture of Jonathan Rosenberg which predicts the homotopy invariance of the negative algebraic K-theory of C(X) follows from the particular case M = Zn. We also give alge- braic conditions for a functor from commutative algebras to abelian groups to be homotopy invariant on C∗-algebras, and for a homology theory of commutative algebras to vanish on C∗-algebras. These criteria have numerous applications. For example, the vanishing cri- terion applied to nil-K-theory implies that commutative C∗-algebras are K-regular. As another application, we show that the familiar formulas of Hochschild-Kostant-Rosenberg and Loday-Quillen for the algebraic Hochschild and cyclic homology of the coordinate ring of a smooth algebraic variety remain valid for the algebraic Hochschild and cyclic homology of C(X). Applications to the conjectures of Be˘ılinson-Soul´eand Farrell-Jones are also given. -
Riemann's Contribution to Differential Geometry
View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Elsevier - Publisher Connector Historia Mathematics 9 (1982) l-18 RIEMANN'S CONTRIBUTION TO DIFFERENTIAL GEOMETRY BY ESTHER PORTNOY UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT URBANA-CHAMPAIGN, URBANA, IL 61801 SUMMARIES In order to make a reasonable assessment of the significance of Riemann's role in the history of dif- ferential geometry, not unduly influenced by his rep- utation as a great mathematician, we must examine the contents of his geometric writings and consider the response of other mathematicians in the years immedi- ately following their publication. Pour juger adkquatement le role de Riemann dans le developpement de la geometric differentielle sans etre influence outre mesure par sa reputation de trks grand mathematicien, nous devons &udier le contenu de ses travaux en geometric et prendre en consideration les reactions des autres mathematiciens au tours de trois an&es qui suivirent leur publication. Urn Riemann's Einfluss auf die Entwicklung der Differentialgeometrie richtig einzuschZtzen, ohne sich von seinem Ruf als bedeutender Mathematiker iiberm;issig beeindrucken zu lassen, ist es notwendig den Inhalt seiner geometrischen Schriften und die Haltung zeitgen&sischer Mathematiker unmittelbar nach ihrer Verijffentlichung zu untersuchen. On June 10, 1854, Georg Friedrich Bernhard Riemann read his probationary lecture, "iber die Hypothesen welche der Geometrie zu Grunde liegen," before the Philosophical Faculty at Gdttingen ill. His biographer, Dedekind [1892, 5491, reported that Riemann had worked hard to make the lecture understandable to nonmathematicians in the audience, and that the result was a masterpiece of presentation, in which the ideas were set forth clearly without the aid of analytic techniques. -
January 2011 Prizes and Awards
January 2011 Prizes and Awards 4:25 P.M., Friday, January 7, 2011 PROGRAM SUMMARY OF AWARDS OPENING REMARKS FOR AMS George E. Andrews, President BÔCHER MEMORIAL PRIZE: ASAF NAOR, GUNTHER UHLMANN American Mathematical Society FRANK NELSON COLE PRIZE IN NUMBER THEORY: CHANDRASHEKHAR KHARE AND DEBORAH AND FRANKLIN TEPPER HAIMO AWARDS FOR DISTINGUISHED COLLEGE OR UNIVERSITY JEAN-PIERRE WINTENBERGER TEACHING OF MATHEMATICS LEVI L. CONANT PRIZE: DAVID VOGAN Mathematical Association of America JOSEPH L. DOOB PRIZE: PETER KRONHEIMER AND TOMASZ MROWKA EULER BOOK PRIZE LEONARD EISENBUD PRIZE FOR MATHEMATICS AND PHYSICS: HERBERT SPOHN Mathematical Association of America RUTH LYTTLE SATTER PRIZE IN MATHEMATICS: AMIE WILKINSON DAVID P. R OBBINS PRIZE LEROY P. S TEELE PRIZE FOR LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT: JOHN WILLARD MILNOR Mathematical Association of America LEROY P. S TEELE PRIZE FOR MATHEMATICAL EXPOSITION: HENRYK IWANIEC BÔCHER MEMORIAL PRIZE LEROY P. S TEELE PRIZE FOR SEMINAL CONTRIBUTION TO RESEARCH: INGRID DAUBECHIES American Mathematical Society FOR AMS-MAA-SIAM LEVI L. CONANT PRIZE American Mathematical Society FRANK AND BRENNIE MORGAN PRIZE FOR OUTSTANDING RESEARCH IN MATHEMATICS BY AN UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT: MARIA MONKS LEONARD EISENBUD PRIZE FOR MATHEMATICS AND OR PHYSICS F AWM American Mathematical Society LOUISE HAY AWARD FOR CONTRIBUTIONS TO MATHEMATICS EDUCATION: PATRICIA CAMPBELL RUTH LYTTLE SATTER PRIZE IN MATHEMATICS M. GWENETH HUMPHREYS AWARD FOR MENTORSHIP OF UNDERGRADUATE WOMEN IN MATHEMATICS: American Mathematical Society RHONDA HUGHES ALICE T. S CHAFER PRIZE FOR EXCELLENCE IN MATHEMATICS BY AN UNDERGRADUATE WOMAN: LOUISE HAY AWARD FOR CONTRIBUTIONS TO MATHEMATICS EDUCATION SHERRY GONG Association for Women in Mathematics ALICE T. S CHAFER PRIZE FOR EXCELLENCE IN MATHEMATICS BY AN UNDERGRADUATE WOMAN FOR JPBM Association for Women in Mathematics COMMUNICATIONS AWARD: NICOLAS FALACCI AND CHERYL HEUTON M. -
Contemporary Mathematics 442
CONTEMPORARY MATHEMATICS 442 Lie Algebras, Vertex Operator Algebras and Their Applications International Conference in Honor of James Lepowsky and Robert Wilson on Their Sixtieth Birthdays May 17-21, 2005 North Carolina State University Raleigh, North Carolina Yi-Zhi Huang Kailash C. Misra Editors http://dx.doi.org/10.1090/conm/442 Lie Algebras, Vertex Operator Algebras and Their Applications In honor of James Lepowsky and Robert Wilson on their sixtieth birthdays CoNTEMPORARY MATHEMATICS 442 Lie Algebras, Vertex Operator Algebras and Their Applications International Conference in Honor of James Lepowsky and Robert Wilson on Their Sixtieth Birthdays May 17-21, 2005 North Carolina State University Raleigh, North Carolina Yi-Zhi Huang Kailash C. Misra Editors American Mathematical Society Providence, Rhode Island Editorial Board Dennis DeTurck, managing editor George Andrews Andreas Blass Abel Klein 2000 Mathematics Subject Classification. Primary 17810, 17837, 17850, 17865, 17867, 17868, 17869, 81T40, 82823. Photograph of James Lepowsky and Robert Wilson is courtesy of Yi-Zhi Huang. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Lie algebras, vertex operator algebras and their applications : an international conference in honor of James Lepowsky and Robert L. Wilson on their sixtieth birthdays, May 17-21, 2005, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina / Yi-Zhi Huang, Kailash Misra, editors. p. em. ~(Contemporary mathematics, ISSN 0271-4132: v. 442) Includes bibliographical references. ISBN-13: 978-0-8218-3986-7 (alk. paper) ISBN-10: 0-8218-3986-1 (alk. paper) 1. Lie algebras~Congresses. 2. Vertex operator algebras. 3. Representations of algebras~ Congresses. I. Leposwky, J. (James). II. Wilson, Robert L., 1946- III. Huang, Yi-Zhi, 1959- IV. -
2012 Cole Prize in Algebra
2012 Cole Prize in Algebra Alexander S. Merkurjev received the 2012 AMS speaker at the International Congress of Mathema- Frank Nelson Cole Prize in Algebra at the 118th An- ticians (Berkeley, 1986). Twice he has delivered nual Meeting of the AMS in Boston in January 2012. an invited address at the European Congress of Mathematics (1992, 1996), and he was a plenary Citation speaker in 1996 (Budapest). The 2012 Frank Nelson Cole Prize in Algebra is awarded to Alexander S. Merkurjev of the Univer- Response from Alexander S. Merkurjev sity of California, Los Angeles, for his work on the It is a great honor and great pleasure for me to essential dimension of groups. receive the 2012 Frank Nelson Cole Prize in Alge- The essential dimension of a finite or of an alge- bra. I would like to thank the American braic group G is the smallest number of parameters Mathematical Society and the Selection needed to describe G-actions. For instance, if G Committee for awarding the prize to is the symmetric group on n letters, this invari- me. ant counts the number of parameters needed to I am very grateful to my teacher, specify a field extension of degree n, which is the Andrei Suslin (he was awarded the algebraic form of Hilbert’s thirteenth problem. Merkurjev’s papers (“Canonical p-dimension Frank Nelson Cole Prize in Algebra in of algebraic groups”, with N. Karpenko, Adv. 2000). I also want to thank my parents, Math. 205 (2006), no. 2, 410–433; and “Essential family, friends, and colleagues for dimension of finite p-groups”, with N. -
The Materiality & Ontology of Digital Subjectivity
THE MATERIALITY & ONTOLOGY OF DIGITAL SUBJECTIVITY: GRIGORI “GRISHA” PERELMAN AS A CASE STUDY IN DIGITAL SUBJECTIVITY A Thesis Submitted to the Committee on Graduate Studies in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in the Faculty of Arts and Science TRENT UNIVERSITY Peterborough, Ontario, Canada Copyright Gary Larsen 2015 Theory, Culture, and Politics M.A. Graduate Program September 2015 Abstract THE MATERIALITY & ONTOLOGY OF DIGITAL SUBJECTIVITY: GRIGORI “GRISHA” PERELMAN AS A CASE STUDY IN DIGITAL SUBJECTIVITY Gary Larsen New conditions of materiality are emerging from fundamental changes in our ontological order. Digital subjectivity represents an emergent mode of subjectivity that is the effect of a more profound ontological drift that has taken place, and this bears significant repercussions for the practice and understanding of the political. This thesis pivots around mathematician Grigori ‘Grisha’ Perelman, most famous for his refusal to accept numerous prestigious prizes resulting from his proof of the Poincaré conjecture. The thesis shows the Perelman affair to be a fascinating instance of the rise of digital subjectivity as it strives to actualize a new hegemonic order. By tracing first the production of aesthetic works that represent Grigori Perelman in legacy media, the thesis demonstrates that there is a cultural imperative to represent Perelman as an abject figure. Additionally, his peculiar abjection is seen to arise from a challenge to the order of materiality defended by those with a vested interest in maintaining the stability of a hegemony identified with the normative regulatory power of the heteronormative matrix sustaining social relations in late capitalism. -
Harish-Chandra 1923–1983
NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES HARISH- C HANDRA 1 9 2 3 – 1 9 8 3 A Biographical Memoir by R O G E R H O W E Any opinions expressed in this memoir are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Academy of Sciences. Biographical Memoir COPYRIGHT 2011 NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES WASHINGTON, D.C. Photo by Herman Landshoff; Courtesy Archives of the Institute for Advanced Study. HARISH-CHANDRA October 11, 1923–October 12, 1983 BY ROGER HOWE He taught them the Kshatria code of honor: that a warrior may never refuse a challenge…. The Five Sons of Pandu, The Story of the Mahabharata Retold by Elizabeth Seeger ARISH-CHANDRA WAS, if not the exclusive architect, cer- Htainly the chief engineer of harmonic analysis on semisimple Lie groups. This subject, with roots deep in mathematical physics and analysis, is a synthesis of Fou- rier analysis, special functions and invariant theory, and it has become a basic tool in analytic number theory, via the theory of automorphic forms. It essentially did not ex- ist before World War II, but in very large part because of the labors of Harish-Chandra, it became one of the major mathematical edifices of the second half of the twentieth century. Harish-Chandra was born in 1923 in Uttar Pradesh, in northern India. His family belonged to the Kshatria (war- rior) caste. Kshatria traditionally were rulers, landowners, and military leaders, and more recently have commonly been businessmen or civil servants. Harish-Chandra’s father, Chandrakishore, was a civil engineer who monitored and maintained the dikes and irrigation canals that sustain agri- 3 B IOGRA P HICAL MEMOIRS culture on the North Indian plains. -
Prizes and Awards
MathFest 2010 Prizes and Awards Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania August 6, 2010 Program Opening and Closing Remarks David Bressoud, President Mathematical Association of America Carl B. Allendoerfer Awards ..................................... 1 Trevor Evans Awards ............................................... 7 Lester R. Ford Awards ............................................ 12 George Pólya Awards ............................................. 25 Annie and John Selden Prize ................................. 29 Henry L. Alder Awards ........................................... 31 Carl B. Allendoerfer Awards The Carl B. Allendoerfer Awards, established in 1976, are made to authors of expository articles published in Mathematics Magazine. The Awards are named for Carl B. Allendoerfer, a distinguished mathematician at the University of Washington and President of the Mathematical Association of America, 1959-60. Ezra Brown and Keith Mellinger “Kirkman‟s Schoolgirls Wearing Hats and Walking Through Fields of Numbers,” Mathematics Magazine, 82:1 (2009), p. 3-15. The historical basis for this interesting article is a problem in recreational mathematics posed by T. P. Kirkman in 1850. Kirkman‘s problem states: ―Fifteen young ladies of a school walk out three abreast for seven days in succession: it is required to arrange them daily so that no two shall walk abreast more than once.‖ Using this problem as a springboard, the authors treat the reader to a captivating exploration of the theory and applications of block designs. In the process, solutions to the schoolgirls problem are uncovered in such seemingly unrelated areas as the subfield structure of algebraic number fields and the configuration of ―spreads‖ and ―packings‖ in finite projective geometry. Additional connections to the schoolgirls problem are revealed by the authors‘ extension of Todd Ebert‘s ―Three Hats‖ problem to an analogous problem involving fifteen hats. -
Adler, Mccarthy Engulfed in WWII 'Fog' - Variety.Com 1/4/10 12:03 PM
Adler, McCarthy engulfed in WWII 'Fog' - Variety.com 1/4/10 12:03 PM http://www.variety.com/index.asp?layout=print_story&articleid=VR1118013143&categoryid=13 To print this page, select "PRINT" from the File Menu of your browser. Posted: Mon., Dec. 28, 2009, 8:00pm PT Adler, McCarthy engulfed in WWII 'Fog' Producers option sci-fi horror comicbook 'Night and Fog' By TATIANA SIEGEL Producers Gil Adler and Shane McCarthy have optioned the sci-fi horror comicbook "Night and Fog" from publisher Studio 407. No stranger to comicbook-based material, Adler has produced such graphic-based fare as "Constantine," "Superman Returns" and the upcoming Brandon Routh starrer "Dead of Night," which is based on the popular Italian title "Dylan Dog." This material is definitely in my strike zone in more ways than one," Adler said, noting his prior role as a producer of such horror projects as the "Tales From the Crypt" series. "But what really appealed to me wasn't so much the genre trappings but rather the characters that really drive this story." Set during WWII, story revolves around an infectious mist unleashed on a military base that transforms its victims into preternatural creatures of the night. But when the survivors try to kill them, they adapt and change into something even more horrific and unstoppable. Studio 407's Alex Leung will also serve as a producer on "Night and Fog." Adler and McCarthy are also teaming to produce an adaptation of "Havana Nocturne" along with Eric Eisner. They also recently optioned Ken Bruen's crime thriller "Tower." "Night and Fog" is available in comic shops in the single-issue format and digitally on iPhone through Comixology. -
Mathematical Language and Mathematical Progress by Eberhard Knobloch
Mathematical language and mathematical progress By Eberhard Knobloch In 1972 the space probe Pioneer 10 was launched, carrying a plaque which contains the first message of mankind to leave our solar system1: The space probe is represented by a circular segment and a rectangle designed on the same scale as that of the man and the woman. This is not true of the solar system: sun and planets are represented by small circles and points. We do not know whether there are other intelligent beings living on stars in the universe, or whether they will even understand the message. But the non-verbal, the symbolical language of geometry seemed to be more appropriate than any other language. The grammar of any ordinary language is so complicated that still every computer breaks down with regards to it. 1 Karl Märker, "Sind wir allein im Weltall? Kosmos und Leben", in: Astronomie im Deutschen Museum, Planeten - Sterne - Welteninseln, hrsg. von Gerhard Hartl, Karl Märker, Jürgen Teichmann, Gudrun Wolfschmidt (München: Deutsches Museum, 1993), p. 217. [We reproduce the image of the plaque from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pioneer_plaque ; Karine Chemla] 1 The famous Nicholas Bourbaki wrote in 19482: "It is the external form which the mathematician gives to his thought, the vehicle which makes it accessible to others, in short, the language suited to mathematics; this is all, no further significance should be attached to it". Bourbaki added: "To lay down the rules of this language, to set up its vocabulary and to clarify its syntax, all that is indeed extremely useful." But it was only the least interesting aspect of the axiomatic method for him.