Laurent Schwartz

Infobox Scientist
name = Laurent Schwartz
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image_width = 90px
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birth_date = birth date|1915|3|5
birth_place = flagicon|France Paris, France
death_date = Death date and age|2002|7|4|1915|3|5
death_place = Paris, France
residence =
citizenship = French
work_institutions = Université de Grenoble, École Polytechnique, Université de Paris VII
alma_mater = Université de Strasbourg
doctoral_advisor =
doctoral_students = Alexander Grothendieck
known_for = Theory of Distributions
author_abbrev_bot =
author_abbrev_zoo =
influences =
influenced =
prizes = Fields Medal, 1950
religion =
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Laurent-Moïse Schwartz (5 March 1915 in Paris – 4 July 2002 in Paris) was a French mathematician.

Biography

Among other teaching positions, he taught at École Polytechnique from 1959 to 1980. His considerable mathematical work, including the theory of distributions, won him the Fields Medal in 1950. Apart from his scientific work, he was a well-known outspoken intellectual. Leaning towards communism, he refused Stalin's totalitarianism. He campaigned against the Algerian War. In danger of being classified as a Jew under the Nazi racial laws, he had to spend parts of WWII in hiding under aliases, predominantly "Laurent Sélimartin". He was related to the Debré family.

References

* Schwartz, Laurent (2001). A Mathematician Grappling with His Century. Birkhauser. ISBN 3-7643-6052-6. A translation in English of Laurent Schwartz's autobiography, "Un mathématicien aux prises avec le siècle",originally published in 1997!.

External links

*
* [http://www.ams.org/notices/200309/fea-schwartz.pdf Biography of Laurent Schwartz] from the American Mathematical Society
* [http://www.ams.org/notices/199809/chandra.ps Review of Schwartz's autobiography] , same source
*