Mark Kac
Mathematician (1914-1984) · United States · On the map · Academics · Died at 70
Mark Kac was a Polish-American mathematician. His main interest was probability theory. His question, "Can one hear the shape of a drum?" set off research into spectral geometry, the idea of understanding the extent to which the spectrum allows one to read back the geometry.
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In the end, the answer was generally "No," although certain shapes, such as a circular drum, can be inferred from the spectrum of the Laplacian.
The same award as Mark
Jordan EllenbergBoth received Chauvenet Prize
Garrett BirkhoffBoth received Paul R. Halmos - Lester R. Ford Awards
Elliott H. LiebBoth received George David Birkhoff PrizePhilip J. DavisBoth received Paul R. Halmos - Lester R. Ford Awards
Emmanuel CandèsBoth received George David Birkhoff Prize
Andrzej MostowskiBoth received Jurzykowski Prize