Chen Jiangong
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Chen Jiangong | |
|---|---|
| 陈建功 | |
| Born | 1893 |
| Died | 1971 |
| Nationality | Chinese |
| Alma mater | Zhejiang Advanced Normal School, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Tokyo Academy of Physics, Tohoku Imperial University |
| Known for | Pioneering modern Chinese mathematics, founding the Chen-Su school of mathematics |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Mathematics |
| Institutions | Zhejiang Industrial School, National Wuchang University, National Chekiang University, National Taiwan University, Academica Sinica, Fudan University, Hangzhou University |
| Chinese name | |
Hanyu Pinyin | Chén Jiàngōng |
| Wade–Giles | Ch'en Chien-kung |
Chen Jiangong (Chinese: 陈建功; 1893–1971), or Jian-gong Chen, was a Chinese mathematician. He was a pioneer of modern Chinese mathematics.[1] He was the dean of the Department of Mathematics, National Chekiang University (now Zhejiang University), and a founding academician the Chinese Academy of Sciences (elected 1955).
Life
Chen was born in Shanyin County (now
Chen later went to Japan to continue his studies. In 1916 he graduated from the Tokyo Institute of Technology, where he majored in textile technology, and the Tokyo Academy of Physics (now known as the Tokyo University of Science).
After graduating from
In 1926, Chen returned to Tohoku Imperial University to continue his studies in mathematics, completing his Ph.D. in 1929 and becoming the first international student awarded a Ph.D. by a Japanese university.[2] It was during this time that he met his later colleague Su Buqing, a fellow mathematics Ph.D. candidate.
After earning his doctorate, Chen was offered teaching positions at institutions including Peking University and Wuhan University.[2] However, on the invitation of National Chekiang University president Shao Feizhi, Chen returned to Zhejiang University to serve as dean of the Department of Mathematics, a position he held for the next 20 years.
After earning his doctorate in 1931, Su Buqing was invited to join Chen's department and take over his position as department chair, allowing Chen to focus more on research.[2] Their collaboration resulted in the Chen-Su school of mathematics in Hangzhou.[2]
The outbreak of the
In 1945, after the end of the Second Sino-Japanese War, Chen was invited by biologist Luo Zongluo (Lo Tsung-lo), who was serving as the 1st president of National Taiwan University (formerly Taihoku Imperial University), as well as the Nationalist government in Nanjing, to travel to Taipei and serve as acting dean of NTU during its reorganization.
In the spring of 1946, Chen returned to mainland China (then still controlled by Nationalist government), where he continued teaching in National Chekiang University and became a researcher in the Mathematics Research Institute at the Academia Sinica. From 1947 to 1948, Chen traveled to the United States to do research at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey. He was elected an academician of the Academia Sinica in 1948.
After the Chinese Civil War, Chen remained in Zhejiang, now part of the People's Republic of China.
In 1952, Zhejiang University was dissociated and its colleges of sciences and humanities were merged with
In recognition of his advancements in the field of mathematics, in 1955 Chen was elected an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in its inaugural year.
In 1958, some departments of Zhejiang University were split from the university in order to form Hangzhou University (which eventually merged back into Zhejiang University in 1998). Chen was appointed to vice president of Hangzhou University and moved back to Hangzhou.
Notable students
- Gu Chaohao – mathematician, former president of the University of Science and Technology of China
- Xia Daoxing– mathematician
- Hu Hesheng – mathematician, 2002 Noether Lecturer
References
- ^ Chen's profile in People.com Archived 2006-02-20 at the Wayback Machine (in Chinese)
- ^ ISBN 0-8218-2124-5.