Mark Kac

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Mark Kac (pronounced kahts, Polish: Marek Kac, b. 3 August 1914, Krzemieniec, then in the Russian Empire, now in Ukraine; d. 26 October 1984, California, USA) was a Polish and American mathematician of Jewish ancestry [1]. His main interest was probability theory. His question "can you hear the shape of a drum?" set off research into spectral theory, with the idea of understanding the extent to which the spectrum allows one to read back the geometry. (In the end, the answer was "no", in general.) His book of popularisation with Stanislaw Ulam is a minor classic.

Kac completed his Ph.D. in mathematics at the University of Lwów in 1937 under the direction of Hugo Steinhaus [2]. While there, he was a member of the Lwów School of Mathematics. After receiving his degree he began to look for a position abroad, and in 1938 was granted a scholarship from the Parnas Foundation which enabled him to go work in the United States. He left Poland aboard MS Piłsudski and arrived in New York City in November, 1938. [3]. From 1939 until 1961 he was at Cornell University, first as an instructor, then from 1943 as assistant professor and from 1947 as full professor [4]. While there, he became a naturalized US citizen in 1943. In 1961 he left Cornell and went to Rockefeller University in New York City. After twenty years there, he moved to the University of Southern California where he spent the rest of his career.

Contents

[edit] Books

  • Mark Kac and Stanisław Ulam: Mathematics and Logic: Retrospect and Prospects, Praeger, New York (1968) Dover paperback reprint.
  • Mark Kac, Enigmas of Chance: An Autobiography, Harper and Row, New York, 1985. Sloan Foundation Series. Published posthumously with a memoriam note by Gian-Carlo Rota. Kac's distinction between an "ordinary genius" like Hans Bethe and a "magician" like Richard Feynman has been widely quoted. (Kac knew both at Cornell University.) ISBN 0060154330

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Obituary in Rochester Democrat & Chronicle, 11 November 1984 [1]
  2. ^ Mathematics Genealogy Project entry on Mark Kac [2]
  3. ^ Mark Kac, Enigmas of Chance: An Autobiography, Harper and Row, New York, 1985. ISBN 0060154330
  4. ^ O'Connor, John J., and Edmund F. Robertson. "Mark Kac". MacTutor History of Mathematics archive [3]


[edit] External links


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