Eberhard Hopf
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Eberhard Frederich Ferdinand Hopf (April 4, 1902 Salzburg, Austria – July 24, 1983 Bloomington, Indiana) was an Austrian mathematician who made significant contributions in the fields of topology and ergodic theory.
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[edit] Biography
Hopf was born in Salzburg, Austria and received his Ph.D. in Mathematics in 1926 and, in 1929, his Habilitation in Mathematical Astronomy from the University of Berlin.
In 1930 he received a fellowship from the Rockefeller Foundation to study classical mechanics with David Birkhoff at Harvard.
While in the Harvard College Observatory he worked on many mathematical and astronomical subjects including topology and ergodic theory. His paper On time average theorem in dynamics which appeared in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences is considered by many as the first readable paper in modern Ergodic theory.
Another important contribution from this period are the Wiener-Hopf equations, which he developed in collaboration with Norbert Wiener from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. By 1960, a discrete version of these equations was being extensively used in electrical engineering and geophysics, their use continuing until the present day.
In late 1931, with the help of Norbert Wiener Hopf joined the Department of Mathematics of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology accepting the position of Assistant Professor. While at MIT, Hopf did much of his work on Ergodic theory.
During this time, Hopf gained notoriety for having the ability to illuminate the most complex subjects for his colleagues and even for non specialists. Because of this talent many discoveries and demonstrations of other mathematicians became easier to understand when described by Hopf.
In 1936 Hopf received an offer of full professorship in the University of Leipzig. As a result of this Hopf, with his wife Ilse and infant daughter Barbara returned to Germany which, by this time, was under the control of the Nazi party.
One important event from this period was the publication of the book Ergodentheorie, most of which was written when Hopf was still at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In that book containing only 81 pages, Hopf made a precise and elegant summary of ergodic theory. In 1940 Hopf was on the list of the invited lecturers to the International Congress of Mathematicians to be held in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Because of the start of World War II, however, this Congress was cancelled. [1]
In 1942 Hopf was drafted to work in the German Aeronautical Institute. In 1944, one year before the end of World War II, Hopf was appointed to a professorship at the University of Munich. In 1947, at the behest of Richard Courant he returned to the United States, where he presented the definitive solution of Hurewicz's problem. [2]
On 22 February 1949 Hopf became a US citizen and joined Indiana University as a Professor. In 1962 he was made Research Professor of Mathematics, staying in that position until his death.
Hopf was never forgiven by many people for his moving to Germany in 1936, where the Nazi party was in power. As a result most of his work to ergodic theory and topology was neglected or even attributed to others in the years following the end of World War II. An example of this was the dropping of Hopf's name from the discrete version of the so Wiener-Hopf equations, which are currently referred to as "Wiener Filter". [1]
[edit] Awards and honors
In 1971 Hopf was the American Mathematical Society Gibbs Lecturer.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ a b J J O'Connor and E F Robertson,MacTutor History of Mathematics http://www-history.mcs.st-andrews.ac.uk/Biographies/Hopf_Eberhard.html
- ^ Refence needed
[edit] External links
- O'Connor, John J., and Edmund F. Robertson. "Eberhard Hopf". MacTutor History of Mathematics archive.
- Eberhard Hopf at the Mathematics Genealogy Project
| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| NAME | Hopf, Eberhard |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | Austrian mathematician |
| DATE OF BIRTH | April 4, 1902 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Salzburg, Austria |
| DATE OF DEATH | July 24, 1983 |
| PLACE OF DEATH | Indianapolis, Indiana |
