Russian Mathematical Surveys

A collection of survey articles by leading young researchers, showcasing the vitality of Russian mathematics.

The editorial board for the History of Mathematics series has selected for this volume a series of translations from two Russian publications, Kolmogorov in Remembrance and Mathematics and its Historical Development. This book, Kolmogorov in Perspective, includes articles written by Kolmogorov's students and colleagues and his personal accounts of shared experiences and lifelong mathematical friendships. The articles combine to give an excellent personal and scientific biography of this important mathematician. There is also an extensive bibliography with the complete list of Kolmogorov's work.

The Development of Mathematics Between the World Wars traces the transformation of scientific life within mathematical communities during the interwar period in Central and Eastern Europe, specifically in Germany, Russia, Poland, Hungary, and Czechoslovakia. Throughout the book, in-depth mathematical analyses and examples are included for the benefit of the reader.World War I heavily affected academic life. In European countries, many talented researchers and students were killed in action and scientific activities were halted to resume only in the postwar years. However, this inhibition turned out to be a catalyst for the birth of a new generation of mathematicians, for the emergence of new ideas and theories and for the surprising creation of new and outstanding scientific schools.The final four chapters are not restricted to Central and Eastern Europe and deal with the development of mathematics between World War I and World War II. After describing the general state of mathematics at the end of the 19th century and the first third of the 20th century, three case studies dealing with selected mathematical disciplines are presented (set theory, potential theory, combinatorics), in a way accessible to a broad audience of mathematicians as well as historians of mathematics.

The role of Yuri Vasilyevich Prokhorov as a prominent mathematician and leading expert in the theory of probability is well known. Even early in his career he obtained substantial results on the validity of the strong law of large numbers and on the estimates (bounds) of the rates of convergence, some of which are the best possible. His findings on limit theorems in metric spaces and particularly functional limit theorems are of exceptional importance. Y.V. Prokhorov developed an original approach to the proof of functional limit theorems, based on the weak convergence of finite dimensional distributions and the condition of tightness of probability measures. The present volume commemorates the 80th birthday of Yuri Vasilyevich Prokhorov. It includes scientific contributions written by his colleagues, friends and pupils, who would like to express their deep respect and sincerest admiration for him and his scientific work.​