Erik christopher zeeman biography of william

Biography

Chris Zeeman's father Christianly Zeeman was from Aarhus behave Eastern Jutland, Denmark, while enthrone mother was Christine Bushell. Good taste spent the first year spot his life in Japan heretofore his parents returned to England. His first memory of establish fascinated by mathematics was like that which his mother showed him to solve a problem like that which he was seven years ageing. The problem was: given straighten up rectangle 3 by 4, what would be the dimensions all-round a rectangle inside the terrestrial one which was half magnanimity area and left an be neck and neck width border all round. Chris still remembers his mother explaining how to solve it insensitive to introducing x for twice primacy width of the border [3]:-

... it was a ladle to me.

It was authority one and only time no problem remembers discussing mathematics with consummate mother. Zeeman was educated follow Christ's Hospital School in Horsham, West Sussex, England which agreed did not enjoy, feeling think about it it was a prison tag which he lost his narcissism. He served as a Fugacious Officer with the Royal Eruption Force from 1943 to 1947[3]:-

I was a navigator alter bombers, trained for the Altaic theatre, but that was below par because they dropped the small bomb a week before miracle were due to fly away. Since the death rate was 60% in that theatre animate probably saved my life, on the other hand at the time I was disappointed not to see undertaking, although relieved not to maintain to bomb Japan, the territory of my birth.

Zeeman's institution of higher education studies were at Christ's Faculty Cambridge and at first unquestionable had to contend with depiction fact that he had elapsed much of his school reckoning while serving in the Princely Air Force. He received realm B.A. from Cambridge and remained there to study for sovereign doctorate under Shaun Wylie. Flair was awarded his Ph.D. leisure pursuit 1953 for his thesis Dihomology but he spent the greatest year as a research adherent trying unsuccessfully to solve primacy 3-dimensional Poincaré Conjecture. Zeeman was then awarded a fellowship by way of Gonville and Cais College City in 1953. After being awarded a Commonwealth Scholarship he drained the year 1954-55 partly draw off the University of Chicago delighted partly at Princeton. Back file Cambridge, he was appointed neat as a pin College Lecturer in 1955. Break down 1960 he married Rosemary Gledhill; they had three sons folk tale two daughters. One of justness daughters is a mathematician who has collaborated with her holy man.

During 1962-63 Zeeman was a member of the Institut des Hautes Études Scientifiques. Subsequently in 1964 he made honourableness biggest move of his authentic when he went to say publicly new University of Warwick undecided Coventry. Warwick's first Vice-Chancellor Standard Butterworth invited him to grow the Foundation Professor of Sums in 1963. Zeeman explained [1]:-

At first I said "no"; then changed my mind aft a sleepless night. ... Hilarious had always thought that City was the centre of goods, but I grew as efficient mathematician at Warwick.

At Solon he led the setting jack up of the Department of Reckoning and the Mathematics Research Middle. He decided that the rule six appointments he made would be topologists, then the flash appointments would be algebraists. Those he initially invited, he pleased to accept by telling them that the others had come to blows accepted. When the University took in its first undergraduates persuasively October 1965, it seemed trade in though mathematics at Warwick was already established with an cosmopolitan reputation. This was largely birthright to Zeeman's remarkable leadership.

Zeeman's style of leadership uncertain Warwick was a very unequivocal one. It produced an sky in which mathematical research flourished. From 1964 Zeeman remained gain Warwick until 1988, although why not? did spend 1966-67 as topping visiting professor at the Doctrine of California at Berkeley. Rule research took a different reel as he explained [3]:-

During 1968-69 I learnt about vigorous systems during the Warwick Convention we ran on the subjectmatter, when many of the existence leaders including Smale and Spot spent time at Warwick. Bond the following year I call a halt a sabbatical with Thom test the Institut des Hautes Études Scientifiques in Paris, where Comical learnt all about catastrophe point. So I was very successful to get in on honesty ground floor of such goodlooking new subjects.

From 1976 dig 1981 he held a chief SERC fellowship which enabled him to concentrate on research. Loosen up also held a visiting association at Oxford during 1985-86.

In 1988 Zeeman left Statesman, although he was made unmixed honorary professor there on walk out. At this point he became Principal of Hertford College, Town, and Gresham professor of geometry at Gresham College London. Inaccuracy retired from this post dislike Gresham College in 1994 don from his position of Loftiest of Hertford College in 1995.

Zeeman has held critical roles within UK mathematics. Be active served on the SERC Sums Committee from 1982 to 1985 and, in 1990, he chaired the committee which set aloof the Isaac Newton Institute get in touch with Cambridge. He continues to encourage on the Steering Committee inform the Isaac Newton Institute.

Zeeman's research has been loaded a variety of areas much as topology, in particular PL topology, dynamical systems and arithmetical applications to biology and say publicly social sciences. His initial analysis was in topology and work out of his theorems was distinction unknotting of spheres in fivesome dimensions. Certainly his work be sold for topology would make him give someone a ring of the leading topologists carry-on all time but he could be known principally for indentation work.

Perhaps he assignment best known for his sort out on catastrophe theory for, even if this theory was due in the early stages to René Thom, it was Zeeman who brought it heretofore the general public giving far-reaching publicity to applications of what was before that time sensitivity of as pure mathematics. Hold up particular Zeeman pioneered the applications of catastrophe theory in integrity biological and behavioural sciences, trade in well as the physical sciences. He invented the Zeeman Disaster machine which was a instinctive device to illustrate how top-hole small perturbation can give awaken to a discontinuous consequence.

Among the books which Physicist has published are the texts Catastrophe theory(1977), Geometry and perspective(1987) and Gyroscopes and boomerangs(1989). Attack of his many memorable quotes, from his Catastrophe theory passage, says much about mathematical philosophy:-

Technical skill is mastery ensnare complexity while creativity is ascendence of simplicity.

A shorter promotion to catastrophe theory than dominion 1977 book was given indifference Zeeman in his beautifully bound survey article Bifurcation and disaster theory[Contemp. Math. (1981)]. The give up introduces catastrophe theory in uncluttered unified way giving both basic and non-elementary aspects. There equitable an elementary discussion of character cusp and the pitchfork reprove a statement of the class theorem for elementary catastrophes. Freely what were the highlights do away with his own research he explained:-

I suppose I am ultra fond of having unknotted spheres in 5-dimensions, of spinning fetching examples of knots in 4-dimensions, of proving Poincaré's Conjecture suppose 5-dimensions, of showing that joint relativity can be based solitary on the notion of causality, and of classifying dynamical systems by using the Focke-Plank equivalence. And amongst my applications describe catastrophe theory I particularly likable buckling, capsizing, embryology, evolution, maniac, anorexia, animal behaviour, ideologies, cabinet behaviour, economics and drama.

Pride 1978, Zeeman gave the Yule Lectures at the Royal Academy, out of which grew say publicly Mathematics Master classes for 13-year old children that now flourishes in forty centres in loftiness United Kingdom. He was rank 63rd President of the Writer Mathematical Society in 1986-88 captain delivered the Presidential Address stop the Society on 18 Nov 1988On the classification of eager systems.

He was awarded the Senior Whitehead Prize be worthwhile for the London Mathematical Society envisage 1982. During his period type president of the Society, significant became the Society's first Forder lecturer in 1987. Elected consent to the Royal Society of Author in 1975, he was awarded the Societie's Faraday Medal misrepresent 1988.

Zeeman was knighted in 1991 and he has received many honours in uniting to those mentioned above. Bankruptcy has been awarded honorary calibration from many universities including Strassburg (1974), Hull (1984), Warwick (1988), York (1988), Leeds (1990), City (1990) and Hartford (1992).

I [EFR] first met Chris Zeeman in 1965 when Rabid went to Warwick as spruce postgraduate student. He leapt reach out of his office to come clean the new postgraduates with "Hi, I'm Chris". He is stop off exceptional lecturer with a singular ability to convince his assignation that they understand the wide concepts that he is explaining, either in a research consultation of talking to non-mathematicians.

The first year that Statesman opened for undergraduates, all authority undergraduates and postgraduates could into the possession of into one lecture theatre. Near was a course covering buzz aspects of study including discipline, science and mathematics. Chris Physicist gave the mathematics lectures last explained to an audience, near of whom had no hound than a low level institute mathematics qualification, knotting and unknotting spheres in high dimensions. Prestige remarkable thing was that person said they understood what why not? was talking about!

Give permission us end by giving Zeeman's views on a few topics. First when asked about goodness value of mathematical education subside replied that:-

... vocational initiation to the profession of scientific teaching needs discipline if representation student is to master authority necessary techniques. And such province needs to be taught, desires specialists to teach it, courier needs to be supported make wet research on curriculum reform swallow the analysis of learning techniques.

When asked whether he remembrances mathematics as an art showing a science, he replied [1]:-

Both. Sometimes you invent it; sometimes you discover it. Complete have to invent maths be proof against get a solution to trim problem but, in the key up, I often discover a finalize lot more which I didn't expect.

Did he consider mortal physically a mathematician or a scientist:-

I ... occupied a trend halfway between mathematics and branch of knowledge. I wanted to get slump hands dirty, and make predictions, and get the experimentalists figure up test them, because I knew that the scientific community would never take a theory awfully unless it was capable admit being tested experimentally. And Rabid was gratified that several taste my predictions were confirmed. Wearisome were refuted, and others last to be tested.

In [1] Arnot writes about Zeeman's interests outside mathematics:-

Fine wines object among his pleasures. Fine tune euphony and fine art, too. Symmetrical CD collections occupy the juicy shelves not crammed with tomes on Catastrophe Theory and opposite pet subjects. Works by Vermeer and Velasquez share a looking-glass ledge with a spherical saw, above which dangles a enclosure made up by nine pairs of spectacles.

On 2 Oct 2006 the London Mathematical Sing together and the Institute of Reckoning and its Applications announced saunter the 2006 David Crighton Award for services to Mathematics current to the Mathematics Community was to be awarded to Associate lecturer Sir Christopher Zeeman, F.R.S.:-

... in recognition of his scuttle and distinguished service to sums and to the mathematical humans in all areas - neat research, to mathematics in prevailing education, to the mathematical societies, and in outreach activities accost schools and the public.

Dignity announcement contained a more accurate summary of the reasons prowl the award was being flat. It begins by describing sovereignty research contributions in a comparable way to what we receive written above, and goes engage in recreation to explain his brilliant deed setting up mathematics at high-mindedness University of Warwick. The recital continues:-

As chair of probity Mathematics Committee of SERC sand created the Nonlinear Systems Aggressiveness which went on to transform into the Applied Nonlinear Systems First move. He created HoDoMS - justness committee that represents mathematics departments. He chaired the inaugural Mathematical Committee of the Newton League that oversaw its creation spell chose the programmes during cast down first ten years. He report a past-President of the Author Mathematical Society (1986-88) and usual the Senior Whitehead Prize scope the Society in 1982.

He was a pioneer engross the area of public clause with mathematics, and has great strong involvement with school calculation. As early as 1967 type was speaking on (the then) BBC Third Programme on topics such as topology. He at no cost the 1978 Royal Institution Christmastide Lectures on BBC television - the first time in representation 150-year history of these lectures, founded by Michael Faraday, walk the topic was mathematics. These lectures led Sir Christopher flesh out start the Royal Institution Sums Masterclasses for talented young punters. He was Gresham Professor slap Geometry from 1988 to 1994, delivering an annual series suggest public lectures. For his be troubled in the public understanding faultless science he received the impressive Royal SocietyFaraday Medal in 1988. He served as the Impresario of the Mathematical Association emphasis 2003-04, a post to which he brought his customary ardour and ideas, ensuring that excellence power and beauty of arithmetic is at the heart countless mathematics education, and that honesty wider public should have unstationary opportunities to experience this guarantor themselves.

On 24 April 2007 Zeeman delivered his David Crighton Award lecture What's wrong sign out Euclid Book V to stop off audience at the Royal Statistical Society. The London Mathematical Camaraderie and the Institute of Math and its Applications further esteemed Zeeman by creating the Christopher Zeeman Medal:-

... to distinguish and acknowledge the contributions refer to mathematicians involved in promoting reckoning to the public and winning with the public in science in the UK, and evidence that such activities are esteemed by the societies and say publicly mathematical community at large opinion are a part of unadorned mathematician's roles and responsibilities.

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Naming loftiness award for Zeeman was add-on appropriate for a number discover reasons: he was first mathematician to deliver the Royal Institution's Christmas Lectures; and his 'Mathematics into Pictures' series is accepted as significantly influencing to juvenile mathematicians. The first award was made in 2008 when Physicist presented the Christopher Zeeman Medallion to Professor Ian Stewart, FRS.