From the Department Head

Of course, all of us understand the importance of mathematics and its central role in modern life, but that sense has not always been shared by society at large. This issue of Math PUrview gives several indications that the rest of the world is becoming more aware of the role of our subject.

One event that has put mathematics in the news was the announcement by the Clay Mathematics Institute of $1,000,000 prizes for the solution of each of seven major problems in mathematics. The announcement made national television as well as national and regional newspapers. Professor Joe Lipman's essay later in this newsletter gives his view of the significance of the prizes and of mathematical research. While the essay gives his personal view, I think you would find that most of our faculty agree on the significance of mathematical research in general and the role of their research in particular. As a research university, Purdue plays an important role in creating new knowledge in addition to passing existing knowledge on to the next generation of scholars and citizens. Our faculty and alumni are playing significant roles in the development of mathematical ideas that are important now and will provide the foundation for future developments in mathematics and other parts of science.

Another form of recognition of the importance of mathematics comes from the National Science Foundation and the Department of Education who provide funding for projects they see as important for the future of the country. This year our department was awarded funding for a GAANN (Graduate Assistance in Areas of National Need) project from the Department of Education and has been promised funding for a VIGRE (Vertical Integration of Graduate Research and Education) project from NSF. GAANN provides support for graduate students, and VIGRE provides support for undergraduates to do research, for graduate students, and for postdoctoral faculty. Both projects are designed to stimulate interest in careers in the mathematical sciences and to provide funding for young people in the U.S. to pursue their goals in mathematics. We hope that these grants will help us recruit greater numbers of outstanding students and faculty and ultimately that they will help us make a larger contribution to developing the mathematical infrastructure of our country.

Although probably less newsworthy for the general public than the prizes, later this summer the attention of research mathematicians will be turned to the meeting "Mathematical Challenges of the 21st Century" sponsored by the American Mathematical Society. In many ways parallel to the International Congress of Mathematicians in 1900, this meeting will provide an opportunity to look back over the past century's mathematical progress and to indicate where we should be going in the future. At the meeting in 1900, David Hilbert suggested 23 problems he believed would be important in shaping the mathematics of the 20th century. His vision has been fulfilled: most of his questions have been answered or substantially resolved, and collectively, the problems have played an important role in shaping the work of mathematicians all over the world for the past century.

In this newsletter, we look at some of the recognition of mathematics. We also take the opportunity to look back to celebrate the accomplishments of some of those in our department in the past and to look forward to the promise of future contributions from our faculty and alumni. We hope that you will read this with interest, that it will jog your memory of happy times at Purdue, that it will inspire you, and that it will encourage you to participate in the future of Purdue's Mathematics Department. Stop in to see us or just drop us a note, you are always welcome here!