Donald J. Newman
Encyclopedia
Donald J. Newman (July 27, 1930 – March 28, 2007) was an American
mathematician and professor, excelling at the Putnam mathematics competition while an undergraduate at City College of New York
and New York University
, and later receiving his PhD from Harvard University
in 1953.
. He was an avid problem-solver, and as an undergraduate was a Putnam Fellow all three years he took part in the Putnam math competition; only the third person to attain that feat. His mathematical specialties included complex analysis
, approximation theory
and number theory
. He provided an unusually elementary proof of the prime number theorem
.
Newman was a friend and associate of John Nash
. His career included posts as a Professor of Mathematics at MIT, Brown University
, Yeshiva University
, Temple University
and a distinguished chair at Bar Ilan University in Israel. He held government and industry positions at Avco
, Republic Aviation, Bell Laboratories, IBM
and the NSA.
Newman's love of problem solving comes through in his writing; his published output as a mathematician includes 150 papers and five books. He taught numerous students over the years, including Robert Feinerman, Jonah Mann, Eli Passow, Louis Raymon, Shmuel Weinberger
, and Gerald Weinstein at Yeshiva University, and Bo Gao, Don Kellman, Jonathan Knappenberger, and Yuan Xu at Temple University.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
mathematician and professor, excelling at the Putnam mathematics competition while an undergraduate at City College of New York
City College of New York
The City College of the City University of New York is a senior college of the City University of New York , in New York City. It is also the oldest of the City University's twenty-three institutions of higher learning...
and New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
, and later receiving his PhD from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in 1953.
Life and works
Newman was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1930, and studied at New York's famous Stuyvesant High SchoolStuyvesant High School
Stuyvesant High School , commonly referred to as Stuy , is a New York City public high school that specializes in mathematics and science. The school opened in 1904 on Manhattan's East Side and moved to a new building in Battery Park City in 1992. Stuyvesant is noted for its strong academic...
. He was an avid problem-solver, and as an undergraduate was a Putnam Fellow all three years he took part in the Putnam math competition; only the third person to attain that feat. His mathematical specialties included complex analysis
Complex analysis
Complex analysis, traditionally known as the theory of functions of a complex variable, is the branch of mathematical analysis that investigates functions of complex numbers. It is useful in many branches of mathematics, including number theory and applied mathematics; as well as in physics,...
, approximation theory
Approximation theory
In mathematics, approximation theory is concerned with how functions can best be approximated with simpler functions, and with quantitatively characterizing the errors introduced thereby...
and number theory
Number theory
Number theory is a branch of pure mathematics devoted primarily to the study of the integers. Number theorists study prime numbers as well...
. He provided an unusually elementary proof of the prime number theorem
Prime number theorem
In number theory, the prime number theorem describes the asymptotic distribution of the prime numbers. The prime number theorem gives a general description of how the primes are distributed amongst the positive integers....
.
Newman was a friend and associate of John Nash
John Forbes Nash
John Forbes Nash, Jr. is an American mathematician whose works in game theory, differential geometry, and partial differential equations have provided insight into the forces that govern chance and events inside complex systems in daily life...
. His career included posts as a Professor of Mathematics at MIT, Brown University
Brown University
Brown University is a private, Ivy League university located in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Founded in 1764 prior to American independence from the British Empire as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations early in the reign of King George III ,...
, Yeshiva University
Yeshiva University
Yeshiva University is a private university in New York City, with six campuses in New York and one in Israel. Founded in 1886, it is a research university ranked as 45th in the US among national universities by U.S. News & World Report in 2012...
, Temple University
Temple University
Temple University is a comprehensive public research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Originally founded in 1884 by Dr. Russell Conwell, Temple University is among the nation's largest providers of professional education and prepares the largest body of professional...
and a distinguished chair at Bar Ilan University in Israel. He held government and industry positions at Avco
Avco
Avco Corporation is a subsidiary of Textron which operates Textron Systems Corporation and Lycoming.-Brief history:The Embry-Riddle Company created the Aviation Corporation in 1928 as a holding company tasked with acquiring small airlines...
, Republic Aviation, Bell Laboratories, IBM
IBM
International Business Machines Corporation or IBM is an American multinational technology and consulting corporation headquartered in Armonk, New York, United States. IBM manufactures and sells computer hardware and software, and it offers infrastructure, hosting and consulting services in areas...
and the NSA.
Newman's love of problem solving comes through in his writing; his published output as a mathematician includes 150 papers and five books. He taught numerous students over the years, including Robert Feinerman, Jonah Mann, Eli Passow, Louis Raymon, Shmuel Weinberger
Shmuel Weinberger
The mathematician Shmuel Aaron Weinberger is an American topologist. He completed a PhD in mathematics in 1982 at New York University under the direction of Sylvain Cappell. Weinberger was from 1994 to 1996 the Thomas A...
, and Gerald Weinstein at Yeshiva University, and Bo Gao, Don Kellman, Jonathan Knappenberger, and Yuan Xu at Temple University.
Selected publications
- --. (1979) Approximation with rational functions. Providence, RI: Conference Board of the Mathematical Sciences by the American Mathematical Society. ISBN 0821816918.
- --. (1982) A problem seminar. New York: Springer. ISBN 0387907653.
- --. (1998) Analytic number theory. New York: Springer. ISBN 0387983082 (#177 in the Graduate Texts in MathematicsGraduate Texts in MathematicsGraduate Texts in Mathematics is a series of graduate-level textbooks in mathematics published by Springer-Verlag. The books in this series, like the other Springer-Verlag mathematics series, are yellow books of a standard size...
series). - (1996) Complex Analysis. (2004 update w/ Joseph Bak)
Papers and monographs
- The Hexagon Theorem (1982http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpl/freeabs_all.jsp?tp=&arnumber=1056492&isnumber=22725)
- Finite type functions as limits of exponential sums (1974, MRC technical summary report)
- Splines and the logarithmic function (1974, MRC)
- Thought Less Mathematics, an essay on why branching thinking and similar solutions aren't central to mathematics and may even obscure deeper ideas