Funny names for mathematicians?
Angus Rodgers
to the fact that the series "London Mathematical
Society Student Texts" (Cambridge University Press)
is edited by a Dr. C. M. Series, of the University
of Warwick.
Does anybody know any other slightly amusing names
of real mathematicians?
For amusing real names in general, there is the
classic, John Train, _Remarkable Names of Real
People_. This starts with a bang:
"A. A. A. D'Artagnan Umslopagaas Dynamite Macaulay"!!!
and end with:
Dr. Zoltan Ovary (a gynaecologist)
("Our respects to the Doctor, and, of course, to
Madame Ovary.")
--
Angus Rodgers (angus_prune@ eats spam; reply to angusr@)
WilmaScranton
>I hope I won't cause offence if I draw attention
>to the fact that the series "London Mathematical
>Society Student Texts" (Cambridge University Press)
>is edited by a Dr. C. M. Series, of the University
>of Warwick.
>
>Does anybody know any other slightly amusing names
>of real mathematicians?
The most slightly amusing mathematician's name known to me is Cesare Burali-40.
Wilma.
Mike Oliver
> The most slightly amusing mathematician's name
> known to me is Cesare Burali-40.
Yes, that's *extremely* slightly amusing. One might say
almost, but not quite, entirely unamusing.
Erland Gadde
"Angus Rodgers" <angus...@bigfoot.com> skrev i meddelandet
> Does anybody know any other slightly amusing names
> of real mathematicians?
Their is a Swedish mathematician called Mikael Passare. That's amusing,
because "passare" is the Swedish word for "pair of compasses".
flash
"Erland Gadde" <erl...@bredband.net> wrote in message
news:LwwU7.11296$4S.2...@news2.bredband.com...
Algebraic Numbers".
James Hunter
Angus Rodgers wrote:
> I hope I won't cause offence if I draw attention
> to the fact that the series "London Mathematical
> Society Student Texts" (Cambridge University Press)
> is edited by a Dr. C. M. Series, of the University
> of Warwick.
>
> Does anybody know any other slightly amusing names
> of real mathematicians?
There was one named Playfair.
Obviously the reason why mathematicians
know only the null-set about Game Theory.
Bill Taylor
|> slightly amusing mathematician's name known to me is Cesare Burali-40.
I thought it was much more amusing when I augmented it to include his paradox
and the Cantor paradox (sometimes attributed to Peano) into a more general
Peano-Forte paradox.
Oh well.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bill Taylor W.Ta...@math.canterbury.ac.nz
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
They laughed at me when I said I wanted to be a comedian.
But I showed them - nobody's laughing now!
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Angus Rodgers
<sta...@netzero.net> wrote:
> > Look up "Parschnip's Theorem, in Harry Pollard's
> > book, "The Theory of Algebraic Numbers".
It's not in the index of the 3rd edition of Pollard
and Diamond, _The Theory of Algebraic Numbers_ (MAA
1975, Dover 1998); and a quick leaf through the pages
hasn't turned it up for me, either. But it is indeed
a pretty funny name, for us English-speakers.
BTW, someone e-mailed me with this information:
"For many years, the chair of the mathematics depart-
ment at Oral Roberts University (in the Bible Belt of
the USofgodfearingA) was named Verbal Snook."
Jesse F. Hughes
> BTW, someone e-mailed me with this information:
>
> "For many years, the chair of the mathematics depart-
> ment at Oral Roberts University (in the Bible Belt of
> the USofgodfearingA) was named Verbal Snook."
Oral hired a man named "Verbal"? You don't suppose the correspondent
was having you on, now do you?
--
Jesse Hughes
"I always end up feeling better when a particular argument fails
because then a weight of responsibility gets lifted off of me."
-- "Happy" James Harris on mathematical responsibility
Jesse F. Hughes
> Angus Rodgers <angus...@bigfoot.com> writes:
>
> > BTW, someone e-mailed me with this information:
> >
> > "For many years, the chair of the mathematics depart-
> > ment at Oral Roberts University (in the Bible Belt of
> > the USofgodfearingA) was named Verbal Snook."
>
> Oral hired a man named "Verbal"? You don't suppose the correspondent
> was having you on, now do you?
Shame on me for my cynicism (and for following up my own message).
From
<URL:http://www.messiah.edu/acdept/depthome/mathsci/acms/bibliog.htm>,
we see:
Snook, Verbal M
1981 Communicating spiritual insights in mathematics classes
In Brabenec [1981]: 119-122
Chairman & Professor of Mathematics, Oral Roberts University(a)
*
In both the mathematical and spiritual realms, abstraction is useful
but can be pedagogically dangerous. Mathematics ``provides vehicles of
thought that enrich spiritual perception'': eternity and infinity,
qualitative vs. quantitative views of number, Flatland. [GBC]
I'll be hornswaggled. Oral hired Verbal after all.
--
Jesse Hughes
"A factor is simply something that multiplies against another factor
to produce a 'product'." -- James Harris offers a definition.
Doug Magnoli
and a prof Zink in the chemistry department. Their groups had hats with
the appropriate chemical symbols on them.
-Doug Magnoli
[Delete the two and the three for email address.]
Nico Benschop
Slightly Off Topic:
The Dutch Union of Airplane pilots has as chairman Mr. Baksteen ...
(in English: Mr. Brick;-)
-- NB
David Ames
> I hope I won't cause offence if I draw attention
> to the fact that the series "London Mathematical
> Society Student Texts" (Cambridge University Press)
> is edited by a Dr. C. M. Series, of the University
> of Warwick.
>
> Does anybody know any other slightly amusing names
> of real mathematicians?
>
unaccented; therefore it approximates the Finnish word "kolme,"
meaning "three."
David Ames
Jon Jacky
> When I was in grad school in the 70's at UCLA, we had a prof Nickolls
> and a prof Zink in the chemistry department.
When I was at Caletch around 1970 there were two economists who worked together
on, I think, game theory. Their names were Plot and Quirk.
- Jon Jacky, jac...@speakeasy.net
Robert Israel
Angus Rodgers <angus...@bigfoot.com> wrote:
>I hope I won't cause offence if I draw attention
>to the fact that the series "London Mathematical
>Society Student Texts" (Cambridge University Press)
>is edited by a Dr. C. M. Series, of the University
>of Warwick.
>Does anybody know any other slightly amusing names
>of real mathematicians?
Weinan E
Sung Won I
So-Young Pi
Robert G. Root
Robert Sine
Harold Grad
R.F. Curl Jr.
V. Ya. Basis
Stanley Eigen
Mulatu Lemma
George Converse
Pedro Real
Robert Israel isr...@math.ubc.ca
Department of Mathematics http://www.math.ubc.ca/~israel
University of British Columbia
Vancouver, BC, Canada V6T 1Z2
Rouben Rostamian
>to the fact that the series "London Mathematical
>Society Student Texts" (Cambridge University Press)
>is edited by a Dr. C. M. Series, of the University
>of Warwick.
>
>Does anybody know any other slightly amusing names
>of real mathematicians?
How about Bramble and Payne?
James Bramble and Lawrence Payne of Cornell wrote dozens
of joint papers in the 1960s. Their papers were very
readable, unlike what the combination of bramble and pain
may suggest.
--
Rouben Rostamian <rost...@umbc.edu>
Steve Leibel
(Rouben Rostamian) wrote:
Two words: Felix Hausdorff.
Angus Rodgers
(Robert Israel) wrote:
> In article <a3n42u4gr8upnnqku...@4ax.com>,
> Angus Rodgers <angus...@bigfoot.com> wrote:
> >Does anybody know any other slightly amusing names
> >of real mathematicians?
> Weinan E
> Sung Won I
> So-Young Pi
> Robert G. Root
> Robert Sine
> Harold Grad
> R.F. Curl Jr.
> V. Ya. Basis
> Stanley Eigen
> Mulatu Lemma
> George Converse
> Pedro Real
We have a winner! Hang on a minute, you're dis-
qualified: those are more than slightly amusing.
Somewhere, there just has to be a Professor Div.
I bet people have tried to get Eigen and Basis
to collaborate. (Or Lemma and Converse, or I
and Real --- on complex analysis of course ---
oh, this is just too much fun!)
Dave Seaman
Robert Israel <isr...@math.ubc.ca> wrote:
>>Does anybody know any other slightly amusing names
>>of real mathematicians?
>Weinan E
>Sung Won I
>So-Young Pi
>Robert G. Root
>Robert Sine
>Harold Grad
>R.F. Curl Jr.
>V. Ya. Basis
>Stanley Eigen
>Mulatu Lemma
>George Converse
>Pedro Real
And don't forget the papers in astrophysics by "Alpher, Bethe and Gamow."
--
Dave Seaman dse...@purdue.edu
Amnesty International says Mumia Abu-Jamal decision falls short of justice.
<http://www.amnestyusa.org/news/2001/usa12192001.html>
Edwin Clark
> > of real mathematicians?
This may not be funny but is surely a mathematician with
one of the longest names:
Bruno Ratsimandefitra Andriamanalimanana,
[disseration: Ovals, unitals and codes, 1979, Lehigh University]
------------------------------------------------------------
W. Edwin Clark, Math Dept, University of South Florida,
http://www.math.usf.edu/~eclark/
------------------------------------------------------------
maky m.
> to the fact that the series "London Mathematical
> Society Student Texts" (Cambridge University Press)
> is edited by a Dr. C. M. Series, of the University
> of Warwick.
>
> Does anybody know any other slightly amusing names
> of real mathematicians?
i recently acquired a book on green's functions by a fellow named
roach. if i remeber correctly, the book is from cup.
G. A. Edgar
included were three named Max, Ray, and Norm.
--
G. A. Edgar http://math.ohio-state.edu/~edgar/
Chan-Ho Suh
"Steve Leibel" <ste...@bluetuna.com> wrote in message
news:stevel-236B41....@news-server.nyc.rr.com...
I'm not sure I understand why this is slightly amusing or humorous at all!
Bill Taylor
Back in the early 70's we had a prime minister Norman Kirk, universally
known as "Big Norm".
So naturally we folk referred to New Zealand as a Normed Space.
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\_ \_ \_ \_ \_ \_ \_ \_ \_ \_
</ </ </ </ </ </ </ </ </ </
/) /) /) /) /) /) /) /) /) />
(/' (/' (/' (/' (/' (/' (/' (/' (/' (/'
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
P.S. In view of the latest film, I guess we are now some sort of ring...
Dave Taylor
Dave Seaman <dse...@seaman.cc.purdue.edu> wrote in message
news:a006pa$8...@seaman.cc.purdue.edu...
> In article <9vvujm$1kl$1...@nntp.itservices.ubc.ca>,
> Robert Israel <isr...@math.ubc.ca> wrote:
> >>Does anybody know any other slightly amusing names
> >>of real mathematicians?
> >Weinan E
> >Sung Won I
> >So-Young Pi
> >Robert G. Root
> >Robert Sine
> >Harold Grad
> >R.F. Curl Jr.
> >V. Ya. Basis
> >Stanley Eigen
> >Mulatu Lemma
> >George Converse
> >Pedro Real
> And don't forget the papers in astrophysics by "Alpher, Bethe and Gamow."
Yes, but that was cheating - IIRC Hans Bethe didn't have anything to do with
the
paper, his name was just added to it by Gamow as a joke.
--
Dave Taylor
"Eyes watch you with silent hate"
Virgil
"Dave Taylor" <baby...@genie.co.uk> wrote:
And that makes it not funny?
Robert Israel
good Three, though.
E. Clark
> good Three, though.
Well, if one lisps a little I. J. Tree ought to fit.
In our department we have a professor You. [We have to say Dr You to
distinguish ordinary usage of you.] And we had a graduate student
named He. [Pronounce more like Hu, of which there are many.] There
are also mathematicians named I and She. But no Who, They or It to
my knowledge.
--Edwin Clark
Jan Kristian Haugland
Angus Rodgers wrote:
> Does anybody know any other slightly amusing names
> of real mathematicians?
In the Whitehead library in Oxford there is a D Phil thesis
by "Y. V. Pule". The last name means "copulate" in Norwegian.
--
J K Haugland
http://home.hia.no/~jkhaug00
Christian Ohn
> Does anybody know any other slightly amusing names
> of real mathematicians?
Well, W.C. Waterhouse springs to mind.
Then, when I once looked at the first page of a peper, and glancing over
the bibliography of the previous paper, I was struck by a reference to a
paper by Ueberberg, followed by a reference to Unterberger.
--
Christian Ohn
e-mail: fr.rei...@ohn.christian
MCKAY john
Line,
Corner,
Edge,
Hall,
Room,
Wall
It is legendarily disappointing at the lack of joint papers by them.
What is surprising is that their areas of interest overlapped.
John McKay
--
But leave the wise to wrangle, and with me
the quarrel of the universe let be;
and, in some corner of the hubbub couched,
make game of that which makes as much of thee.
MCKAY john
Angus Rodgers
(MCKAY john) wrote:
> In article <f4bbb51e.0112...@posting.google.com>,
> E. Clark <ecl...@math.usf.edu> wrote:
> >In our department we have a professor You. [We have to say
> >Dr You to distinguish ordinary usage of you.] And we had
> >a graduate student named He. [Pronounce more like Hu, of
> >which there are many.] There are also mathematicians named
> >I and She. But no Who, They or It to my knowledge.
> But there IS an [Alexander] Its.
Which reminds me, there is also a mathematician (and apparently
a rather famous one) called Jacques Tits.
(huh-huh huh-huh huh-huh, cool)
Michael Barr
> In article <9vvujm$1kl$1...@nntp.itservices.ubc.ca>,
> Robert Israel <isr...@math.ubc.ca> wrote:
>
>
> >>Does anybody know any other slightly amusing names
> >>of real mathematicians?
>
>
> >Weinan E
> >Sung Won I
> >So-Young Pi
> >Robert G. Root
> >Robert Sine
> >Harold Grad
> >R.F. Curl Jr.
> >V. Ya. Basis
> >Stanley Eigen
> >Mulatu Lemma
> >George Converse
> >Pedro Real
>
>
>
> And don't forget the papers in astrophysics by "Alpher, Bethe and Gamow."
Just one paper, but it was a doozy, since it predicted the microwave
background radiation. Bethe actually had nothing to do with it, but
went along for the amusement value.
But did you know that Stanley Eigen's children are named lambda_1 and
lambda_2?
Just joking although he does have two children and the last time I saw
him, I asked him, "How are Lambda_1 and Lambda_2?"
Richard Carr
:Date: Tue, 25 Dec 2001 00:49:37 +0000
:From: Angus Rodgers <angus...@bigfoot.com>
:Newsgroups: sci.math
:Subject: Re: Funny names for mathematicians?
:
:On 24 Dec 2001 18:57:29 GMT, mc...@cs.concordia.ca
:(MCKAY john) wrote:
:
:> In article <f4bbb51e.0112...@posting.google.com>,
:> E. Clark <ecl...@math.usf.edu> wrote:
:
:> >In our department we have a professor You. [We have to say
:> >Dr You to distinguish ordinary usage of you.] And we had
:> >a graduate student named He. [Pronounce more like Hu, of
:> >which there are many.] There are also mathematicians named
:> >I and She. But no Who, They or It to my knowledge.
:
:> But there IS an [Alexander] Its.
:
:Which reminds me, there is also a mathematician (and apparently
:a rather famous one) called Jacques Tits.
:
I fail to see the humour in that name.
I'm surprised nobody has mentioned:
Drs. Wenisdor Notador and Wenit Zajar who published a paper on "The
topological problems of keeping jam in access barriers."
(PPPPPPPPP 10/03/1997 *)
(* Physical Problems of Practical Physics Problems Practically Probed
Pamphlets Periodical)
:(huh-huh huh-huh huh-huh, cool)
:
Richard Carr
:Date: 25 Dec 2001 12:07:53 -0800
:From: Michael Barr <ba...@barrs.org>
:Newsgroups: sci.math
:Subject: Re: Funny names for mathematicians?
:
:dse...@seaman.cc.purdue.edu (Dave Seaman) wrote in message news:<a006pa$8...@seaman.cc.purdue.edu>...
I sure he valued that.
I don't suppose that one of them is called Victor.
Then in the register at school he'd be recorded as Eigen, Victor.
Dave Seaman
Michael Barr <ba...@barrs.org> wrote:
>dse...@seaman.cc.purdue.edu (Dave Seaman) wrote in message news:<a006pa$8...@seaman.cc.purdue.edu>...
>> And don't forget the papers in astrophysics by "Alpher, Bethe and Gamow."
>Just one paper, but it was a doozy, since it predicted the microwave
>background radiation. Bethe actually had nothing to do with it, but
>went along for the amusement value.
There was a paper published in Scientific American some years ago (in the
70's perhaps) by those authors. I take it this is not the famous paper,
but some sort of follow-up.
Angus Rodgers
<ca...@cpw.math.columbia.edu> wrote:
> On Tue, 25 Dec 2001, Angus Rodgers wrote:
> :Which reminds me, there is also a mathematician (and
> :apparently :a rather famous one) called Jacques Tits.
>
> I fail to see the humour in that name.
Is this a transatlantic thing, or do you just mean that
it is in bad taste? (Which it certainly is.)
> :(huh-huh huh-huh huh-huh, cool)
You have to think down to the level of a "Carry On" film
(think: transatlantic Beavis and Butthead) to appreciate
it. Sorry.
Richard Carr
:Date: Wed, 26 Dec 2001 09:53:22 +0000
:From: Angus Rodgers <angus...@bigfoot.com>
:Newsgroups: sci.math
:Subject: Re: Funny names for mathematicians?
:
:On Tue, 25 Dec 2001 19:29:09 -0500, Richard Carr
:
You do realize that I am English and live in England, don't you?
:--
:
Richard Carr
:Date: Wed, 26 Dec 2001 09:53:22 +0000
:From: Angus Rodgers <angus...@bigfoot.com>
:Newsgroups: sci.math
:Subject: Re: Funny names for mathematicians?
:
:On Tue, 25 Dec 2001 19:29:09 -0500, Richard Carr
:<ca...@cpw.math.columbia.edu> wrote:
:
:> On Tue, 25 Dec 2001, Angus Rodgers wrote:
:
:> :Which reminds me, there is also a mathematician (and
:> :apparently :a rather famous one) called Jacques Tits.
:>
:> I fail to see the humour in that name.
:
:Is this a transatlantic thing, or do you just mean that
:it is in bad taste? (Which it certainly is.)
I see - not in the field of mathematics, but there is a geneticist called
Randy Wanker (may be Randi, if female) apparently.
:
:> :(huh-huh huh-huh huh-huh, cool)
:
Angus Rodgers
<ca...@cpw.math.columbia.edu> wrote:
> On Wed, 26 Dec 2001, Angus Rodgers wrote:
> :Is this a transatlantic thing, or do you just mean
> :that it is in bad taste? (Which it certainly is.)
> You do realize that I am English and live in England,
> don't you?
Clearly I don't.
The address "@...columbia.edu" had me fooled.
And on checking the headers, I see that you also have
"Organization: Columbia University", and are posting
from time zone GMT -0500.
(I did think that your name sounded rather English,
but I assumed you were probably an expatriate.)
Sorry, but if this is a joke, I don't get it!
(At least you can tell that I'm British, because
I say "Sorry" a lot.)
Richard Carr
:Date: Wed, 26 Dec 2001 16:04:23 +0000
:From: Angus Rodgers <angus...@bigfoot.com>
:Newsgroups: sci.math
:Subject: Re: Funny names for mathematicians?
:
:On Wed, 26 Dec 2001 07:55:28 -0500, Richard Carr
:<ca...@cpw.math.columbia.edu> wrote:
:
:> On Wed, 26 Dec 2001, Angus Rodgers wrote:
:
:> :Is this a transatlantic thing, or do you just mean
:> :that it is in bad taste? (Which it certainly is.)
:
:> You do realize that I am English and live in England,
:> don't you?
:
:Clearly I don't.
:
:The address "@...columbia.edu" had me fooled.
:
:And on checking the headers, I see that you also have
:"Organization: Columbia University", and are posting
:from time zone GMT -0500.
:
Your eyes can deceive you young Skywalker.
:(I did think that your name sounded rather English,
Trust in your instinct you must.
:but I assumed you were probably an expatriate.)
:
:Sorry, but if this is a joke, I don't get it!
:
:(At least you can tell that I'm British, because
:I say "Sorry" a lot.)
: )
:
:--
:
Angus Rodgers
<ca...@cpw.math.columbia.edu> wrote:
> Trust in your instinct you must.
K. Yoda, T. Fukuda, Y. Morimoto, S. Morishita,
"Computing Optimized Rectilinear Regions for
Association Rules", Proc. KDD'97
Randy Poe
>
> You should be able to find details in mathscinet for
>
> Line,
> Corner,
> Edge,
> Hall,
> Room,
> Wall
>
> It is legendarily disappointing at the lack of joint papers by them.
> What is surprising is that their areas of interest overlapped.
One of the seminal papers in Big Bang theory was by physicists
Ralph Alpher and George Gamow. They added Hans Bethe as a
co-author so that they could publish as "Alpher, Bethe and Gamow".
- Randy
Jan Kristian Haugland
Randy Poe wrote:
> One of the seminal papers in Big Bang theory was by physicists
> Ralph Alpher and George Gamow. They added Hans Bethe as a
> co-author so that they could publish as "Alpher, Bethe and Gamow".
As indicated by Dave Seaman on December 21 ;-)