Rolf Nevanlinna

Rolf Herman Nevanlinna

Rolf Herman Nevanlinna (born Neovius) was a Finnish mathematician who lived from 22 October 1895 to 28 May 1980. He is famous for creating Nevanlinna theory, a special part of math that studies meromorphic functions. These are special kinds of functions that help solve many math problems.

Nevanlinna's work helped mathematicians understand how functions behave when they become very large or have certain gaps. His ideas are still used in many areas of math and science today.

Born in Finland in 1895, Nevanlinna lived through many big changes in the world. Even with these challenges, he kept working in mathematics and became a respected teacher and thinker. He passed away in 1980, but his work continues to influence mathematicians.

Background

Rolf Herman Nevanlinna was born as Rolf Herman Neovius in 1895. In 1906, his family changed their last name to Nevanlinna. Many in his family worked in mathematics and science. His grandfather and uncle were teachers and professors. His father was a physicist and mathematician.

After his father finished his studies, he married and moved to Joensuu, where he taught physics. There, Rolf and his three siblings were born. Later, Rolf grew up to become an important mathematician.

Education

Rolf Nevanlinna started school at age 7 but found it boring, so he was homeschooled. When his family moved to Helsinki in 1903, he went to a grammar school. There he studied French, German, Finnish, and Swedish. He loved music and played the violin. His favorite composers were Bach, Beethoven, and Sibelius.

Later, Nevanlinna attended Helsinki High School. He studied classics and mathematics. He graduated in 1913 and went to the University of Helsinki. He earned his Master of Philosophy in mathematics in 1917. In 1919, he finished his doctoral thesis on complex analysis and became a Doctor of Philosophy on June 2.

Career

Rolf Nevanlinna became a school teacher after finishing his studies in 1919 because there were no university jobs. Later, he worked for an insurance company before becoming a Docent of Mathematics at the University of Helsinki in 1922. During this time, he developed what is now known as Nevanlinna theory.

Nevanlinna’s most important work was in the value distribution theory of meromorphic functions, building on earlier results by Émile Picard. His theory includes two Main Theorems that describe how functions behave. During the Winter War, he helped improve artillery firing tables for the Finnish Army. Later, he taught at the University of Zurich and was one of the first Academicians in the Academy of Finland. He supervised many students, including Lars Ahlfors, a recipient of the Fields Medal. Nevanlinna received honorary degrees from many universities and was honored with several awards for his contributions to mathematics.

Administrative activities

Rolf Nevanlinna had important roles in mathematics and education. In 1954, he started leading the group that began Finland’s first computer project. He was President of the International Mathematical Union from 1959 to 1963 and led the International Congress of Mathematicians in 1962. In 1964, he helped reorganize the Academy of Finland with President Urho Kekkonen. From 1965 to 1970, he was Chancellor of the University of Turku.

Political activities

Rolf Nevanlinna did not play an active role in politics. He had some support for Nazi Germany because of his family background. This led him to take a teaching job at the University of Göttingen at a difficult time.

Later, Nevanlinna helped improve relations between Finnish soldiers and their German commanders. After World War II, he worked to bring mathematicians from many countries together so they could share their ideas.

IMU Abacus Medal (formerly Nevanlinna Prize)

In 1981, the International Mathematical Union made a special prize for theoretical computer science. They named it after the Finnish mathematician Rolf Nevanlinna, calling it the Rolf Nevanlinna Prize. This award was given every four years at big math meetings.

Later, in 2018, the group decided to change the name. Starting in 2022, the prize is known as the IMU Abacus Medal instead.