Gilbert Strang

Gilbert Strang
Born	November 27, 1934 (1934-11-27) Chicago, Illinois
Fields	Mathematics
Institutions	Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Alma mater	University of California, Los Angeles
Doctoral advisor	Peter K. Henrici
Doctoral students	Hermann Flaschka

William Gilbert Strang (born November 27, 1934 in Chicago), usually known as simply Gilbert Strang or Gil Strang, is a renowned American mathematician, with contributions to finite element theory, the calculus of variations, wavelet analysis and linear algebra. He has made many contributions to mathematics education, including publishing seven classic mathematics textbooks and one definitive monograph. Strang is a MathWorks Professor of Mathematics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He teaches Introduction to Linear Algebra and Computational Science and Engineering and his lectures are freely available through MIT OpenCourseWare.

Education

• S. B, 1955, MIT
• B. A., M. A., 1957, Rhodes Scholar, Balliol College, Oxford
• Ph. D., National Science Foundation Fellow, 1959, University of California, Los Angeles. Dissertation: "Difference Methods for Mixed Boundary Value Problems"

University positions

• Professor of Mathematics, MIT (1962–)
• Honorary Fellow, Balliol College, Oxford

Awards and honors

1. Rhodes Scholar (1952)
2. Alfred P. Sloan Fellow (1966–1967)
3. Chauvenet Prize, Mathematical Association of America (1976)
4. Honorary Professor, Xian Jiaotong University, China (1980)
5. American Academy of Arts and Sciences (1985)
6. Honorary Fellow, Balliol College, Oxford University (1999)
7. Honorary Member, Irish Mathematical Society (2002)
8. Award for Distinguished Service to the Profession, Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (2003)
9. Von Neumann Medal, US Association for Computational Mechanics (2005)
10. Haimo Prize, Mathematical Association of America (2006)
11. Su Buchin Prize, International Congress (ICIAM, 2007)
12. Henrici Prize (2007)
13. National Academy of Sciences (2009)
14. Doctor Honoris Causa, University of Toulouse (2010)

Service

• President, Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (1999, 2000)
• Chair, U.S. National Committee on Mathematics (2003–2004)
• Chair, National Science Foundation (NSF) Advisory Panel on Mathematics
• Board Member, International Council for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (ICIAM)
• Abel Prize Committee (2003–2005)

Publications

Books and monographs

1. Computational Science and Engineering (2007)
2. Linear Algebra, Geodesy, and GPS, with Kai Borre (1997)
3. Wavelets and Filter Banks, with Truong Nguyen (1996)
4. Introduction to Linear Algebra (1993, 1998, 2003, 2009)
5. Calculus (1991, 2010)
6. Linear Algebra and Its Applications (1976, 1980, 1988, 2005)
7. Introduction to applied mathematics. Wellesley, MA: Wellesley-Cambridge Press (Strang's publishing company). 1986. pp. xii+758. ISBN 0-9614088-0-4. MR870634. 
8. An Analysis of the Finite Element Method, with George Fix (1973, 2008)

See also

• The Joint spectral radius, introduced by Strang in the early 60s.
• The Strang–Fix condition for accuracy of approximation.

External links

• Gilbert Strang's Home Page at MIT
• International Council for Industrial and Applied Mathematics: ICIAM
• Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics: SIAM
• Linear Algebra video lectures by Gilbert Strang, recorded in Fall of 1999
• Highlights of Calculus video lectures by Gilbert Strang on OCW
• Highlights of Calculus video lectures by Gilbert Strang on YouTube
• Mathematical Methods for Engineers I video lectures by Gilbert Strang
• Mathematical Methods for Engineers II video lectures by Gilbert Strang
• Gilbert Strang at the Mathematics Genealogy Project.