Wu Wenjun

Wu Wenjun

Wu Wenjun (from May 12, 1919 to May 7, 2017), born in Shanghai on May 12, 1919, whose ancestral home is Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province, is a mathematician, academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, researcher of the Academy of mathematics and Systems Sciences of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and honorary director of the Institute of Systems Sciences. Wu Wenjun graduated from the Department of mathematics of Jiaotong University. In 1949, he received a doctor's degree from the University of Strasbourg in France. In 1957, he was elected member (academician) of the academic department of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. In 1991, he was elected member of the Third World Academy of Sciences. In February 2001, he won the highest national science and technology award of 2000.

Wu Wenjun's research work involves many fields of mathematics, and his main achievements are topology and mathematical mechanization. He has done fundamental work for topology; his research on demonstrative classes and demonstrative inlays is known as "Wu formula", "Wu demonstrative classes" and "Wu demonstrative inlays" by international mathematical circles, and is still widely cited by international peers.

On May 7, 2017, Wu Wenjun died in Beijing at the age of 98.

On September 17, 2019, Wu Wenjun was awarded the national honorary title of "people's scientist"; on September 25, he was selected into the list of "the most beautiful strivers"; on December 18, he was selected into the list of "70 returnees of China in 70 years".

Life of the characters

Wu Wenjun was born in Shanghai on May 12, 1919 (eight years of the Republic of China). His ancestral home is Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province. Due to the war, he moved to Zhujiajiao, Qingpu County, which is high and far away from the war. Wu Wenjun was influenced by his father's democratic thought since childhood. He is the eldest son with two younger sisters and a younger brother. When he was 4 years old, he was sent to Wenwei primary school in the lane. The course was simple, so he had a lot of spare time.

In 1932 (the 21st year of the Republic of China), Wu Wenjun was sent back to his hometown of Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province, after the outbreak of the January 28 Incident in Shanghai. Six months later, he returned to Shanghai to continue his studies.

In the autumn of 1933 (the 22nd year of the Republic of China), Wu Wenjun studied in Zhengshi middle school, which was the beginning of his formal study career. When Wu Wenjun graduated from high school, he was actually interested in physics rather than mathematics. A physics exam was very difficult, but he did well. After graduation, the school discussed the recommendation, but the physics teacher recommended him to study mathematics with his unique eyes. He believes that the reason why he did well in physics test is mathematics, and only by studying mathematics can he make better use of his ability.

In 1936, Wu Wenjun was recommended to the Mathematics Department of Jiaotong University. In his junior year, he studied the theory of real variable function mainly by himself and read classic works. With the foundation of real variable function theory, I soon entered Cantor set theory and studied point set topology.

From 1940 to 1945, he taught in Yuying middle school, Peizhen middle school, Nanyang Model women's middle school and Zhijiang University, and lost his job for half a year.

At the beginning of 1946 (the 35th year of the Republic of China), he went to Shanghai temporary University as an assistant to Professor Zheng Taipu; in August of the same year, Chen Shengshen recruited Wu Wenjun to work as an assistant researcher in the Institute of mathematics.

In 1947 (the 36th year of the Republic of China), he completed an important topological research and proved Whitney's product formula and duality theorem, which was published in annals of math in 1948. In October of the same year, due to his outstanding achievements, he was recommended to go to Europe to study in Paris and studied with C. Ehresmann in Strassbourg University.

In 1949, Wu Wenjun visited Zurich and received a French national doctor's degree. In the autumn of the same year, he was invited to work in the French National Center for scientific research in Paris.

In 1948, he began to participate in the research of CNRS, and was promoted to attach é derecherches in 1951.

In 1949, he completed his doctoral dissertation on the demonstrative class of the spatial structure of spherical bundles, which was published in 1952.

In 1950, in collaboration with Thom, he published a paper on stiefel Whitney characteristic classes on manifolds, which was later called Wu class and Wu formula.

In August 1951, he returned to China and worked as a professor in the Department of mathematics of Peking University.

In October 1952, he was a researcher in Xinjian Institute of mathematics.

In 1954, we began to study the topological invariants of non homotopy, and then introduced the embedding class, and studied the embedding, immersion and homeomorphism of complex.

In 1956, he went to the Soviet Union to attend the Third Congress of mathematicians in the Soviet Union and made a Pontrjagin demonstration report, which was well received.

In 1956, he visited Bulgaria with Professor Chen Jiangong and Professor Cheng minde, and then resumed contact with foreign academic circles; in the same year, he visited Bulgaria with Professor Su Buqing.

From 1958 to the founding of China's University of science and technology.

In 1958, he went to the University of Paris to give lectures on embedded classes, which had a great influence on Haefliger and others.

From 1960 to 1965, he was in charge of the third student leader of Mathematics Department of University of science and technology of China.

In 1967, he completed "Application of embedded class theory in wiring".

In 1972, American topographers Browder, Peterson, Spencer and others visited China and obtained the data presented by them and other foreign scholars, such as Smale and others, which made the topological research start again.

In 1973, the topological group of the Institute of mathematics began a seminar on rational homotopy theory, and Wu Wenjun began his research on I * functor theory.

In 1974, he began to be interested in the history of Chinese mathematics and carried out a series of studies on the history of Chinese mathematics. Under Gu Jinyong's pseudonym, he wrote an article entitled "the great contribution of ancient Chinese mathematics to the world culture", clearly stating that "the development of modern mathematics today mainly depends on Chinese mathematics, not Greek mathematics, and the development process of mathematics history is mainly determined by Chinese mathematics This paper was published in Journal of mathematics, No.18, 1975.

At the end of 1976, we began to study the mechanical proof of theorems, and achieved success during the Spring Festival of the next year.

In 1977, he published a paper on the mechanical proof of theorems for the first time, which opened up a new direction.

In 1978, he wrote the article "general situation and development of mathematics" and published in the book "Introduction to modern science and technology" published by Science Press. In the article, the mechanization of mental work was proposed, but it was deleted when it was published.

In 1979, he joined the Communist Party of China; in October of the same year, Guan Zhaozhi founded the Institute of systems science, and Wu Wenjun left the Institute of mathematics to become the deputy director of the Institute.

In 1980, China began to hold a double micro conference and gave a report on "mechanized proof of theorems in elementary geometry and differential geometry" at the first conference.

In the autumn of 1981, I went to give a lecture at the University of California Berkeley.

In 1982, he returned to the University of science and technology of China to preside over the graduation defense of the first batch of doctoral students. (the 18 who participated in the defense were the first batch of doctors trained by China itself.)

In the autumn of 1984, the course of mathematical mechanization machine proof theory was opened in the Graduate School of University of science and technology of China.

In August 1990, the Research Center for mathematical mechanization of the Institute of Systems Sciences of the Chinese Academy of Sciences was established and served as the director of the center. In the same year, it won the mathematics award of the Third World Academy of Sciences.

In 1992, he was the chief scientist of the expert committee of the climbing project "machine certification and its application" of the State Science and Technology Commission; in August of the same year, he went to Austria to participate in AAGR and made an academic visit to RISC Research Institute.

In March 1993, he visited Taiwan with a delegation of scientists.

In May 1995, he received an honorary doctor's degree from City University of Hong Kong. In December of the same year, he went to Singapore to attend the first Asian Conference on Mathematical Science and technology, giving a report on "geometric problem solving and its practical significance".

In 1996, he was the chief scientist of the expert committee of the climbing project "mathematical mechanization and its application" of the State Science and Technology Commission.

In April 1997, the 101st anniversary of Xi'an Jiaotong University and the Symposium on development strategy for the 21st century were solemnly held. Mr. Wu Wenjun came to his alma mater to attend the Symposium and was appointed as an honorary professor of his alma mater.

In 1998, the work on mathematical mechanization since 1997 was summarized into a book called mathematics mechanism: geometry theory solving, geometry problem solving and polynomial equation solving, which will be published by Science Press.

On October 21, 1999, he was appointed as honorary professor of Huazhong University of technology. On November 6, 1999, he attended the academic seminar held in Guangzhou to commemorate the 80th birthday of Mr. Guan Zhaozhi.

From December 15 to 20, 1999, I visited Germany and attended the International Congress of mathematicians.

On February 19, 2001, he won the first national highest science and technology award. Then President Jiang Zemin personally presented the award to Wu Wenjun.

In June 2002, "Some Reflections on the mechanism of mental laboratory in the computer age" was presented at the international academic conference "Frontiers of science" held by Tsinghua University to celebrate Yang Zhenning's 80th birthday.

On November 19, 2003, he held the 2003 National Academic Conference of China intelligence society, the 20th anniversary celebration conference of extenics, and the China South Korea Intelligence Conference

Chinese PinYin : Wu Wen Jun4