Gilbert Strang

Quality 0.50 · 1 view · Updated 2 months ago

American mathematician (born 1934)

title: "Gilbert Strang" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1934-births", "living-people", "20th-century-american-mathematicians", "21st-century-american-mathematicians", "massachusetts-institute-of-technology-school-of-science-faculty", "american-mathematics-educators", "fellows-of-the-society-for-industrial-and-applied-mathematics", "american-rhodes-scholars", "massachusetts-institute-of-technology-alumni", "university-of-california,-los-angeles-alumni", "mathematicians-from-chicago", "members-of-the-united-states-national-academy-of-sciences", "fellows-of-the-american-mathematical-society", "presidents-of-the-society-for-industrial-and-applied-mathematics", "foreign-members-of-the-russian-academy-of-sciences", "sloan-research-fellows", "american-textbook-writers"] description: "American mathematician (born 1934)" topic_path: "science/mathematics" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gilbert_Strang" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary American mathematician (born 1934) ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox scientist"]

FieldValue
nameGilbert Strang
imageGilbertStrang.jpg
captionStrang in 2021
birth_date
birth_placeChicago, Illinois, U.S.
resting_place_coordinates
fieldsMathematics
workplacesMassachusetts Institute of Technology
alma_materMassachusetts Institute of Technology (BS)
Balliol College, Oxford (BA, MA)
University of California, Los Angeles (PhD)
thesis_titleDifference Methods for Mixed Boundary Value Problems
thesis_urlhttps://www.proquest.com/docview/301900319/
thesis_year1959
doctoral_advisorPeter K. Henrici
doctoral_students{{plainlist
awardsChauvenet Prize (1977)
signature
website
::

| name = Gilbert Strang | image = GilbertStrang.jpg | alt = | caption = Strang in 2021 | birth_date = | birth_place = Chicago, Illinois, U.S. | death_date = | death_place = | resting_place = | resting_place_coordinates = | residence = | fields = Mathematics | workplaces = Massachusetts Institute of Technology | alma_mater = Massachusetts Institute of Technology (BS) Balliol College, Oxford (BA, MA) University of California, Los Angeles (PhD) | thesis_title = Difference Methods for Mixed Boundary Value Problems | thesis_url = https://www.proquest.com/docview/301900319/ | thesis_year = 1959 | doctoral_advisor = Peter K. Henrici | academic_advisors = | doctoral_students = {{plainlist|

William Gilbert Strang (born November 27, 1934) is an American mathematician known for his contributions to finite element theory, the calculus of variations, wavelet analysis and linear algebra. He has made many contributions to mathematics education, including publishing mathematics textbooks. Strang was the MathWorks Professor of Mathematics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He taught Linear Algebra, Computational Science, Engineering, Learning from Data, and his lectures are freely available through MIT OpenCourseWare.

Strang popularized the designation of the Fundamental Theorem of Linear Algebra as such.

Biography

Strang was born in Chicago in 1934. His parents William and Mary Catherine Strang migrated to the USA from Scotland. He and his sister Vivian grew up in Washington DC and Cincinnati, and went to high school at Principia in St. Louis.

Strang graduated from MIT in 1955 with a Bachelor of Science in mathematics. He then received a Rhodes Scholarship to the University of Oxford, where he received his B.A. and M.A. from Balliol College in 1957.

Strang earned his Ph.D. from UCLA in 1959 as a National Science Foundation Fellow, under the supervision of Peter K. Henrici. His dissertation was titled "Difference Methods for Mixed Boundary Value Problems".

While at Oxford, Strang met his future wife Jillian Shannon, and they married in 1958. Following his Ph.D. at UCLA, they have lived in Wellesley, Massachusetts for almost all of his 62 years on the MIT faculty. The Strangs have three sons David, John, and Robert and describe themselves as a very close-knit family. He retired on May 15, 2023 after giving his final "Linear Algebra and Learning from Data" lecture at MIT.

Strang's teaching has focused on linear algebra which has helped the subject become essential for students of many majors. His linear algebra video lectures are popular on YouTube and MIT OpenCourseware. Strang founded Wellesley-Cambridge Press to publish Introduction to Linear Algebra (now in 6th edition) and ten other books.

University Positions

He has received Honorary Titles and Fellowships from the following institutes:

Awards

Service

Publications

Books and monographs

  1. Introduction to Linear Algebra, Sixth Edition, Wellesley-Cambridge Press (2023), Introduction to Linear Algebra
  2. Linear Algebra for Everyone (2020)
  3. Linear Algebra and Learning from Data (2019)
  4. Calculus (2017) Textbook | Calculus Online Textbook | Supplemental Resources
  5. Introduction to Linear Algebra, Fifth Edition (2016)
  6. Differential Equations and Linear Algebra (2014) Differential Equations and Linear Algebra - New Book Website
  7. Essays in Linear Algebra (2012)
  8. Algorithms for Global Positioning, with Kai Borre (2012)
  9. An Analysis of the Finite Element Method, with George Fix (2008)
  10. Computational Science and Engineering (2007)
  11. Linear Algebra and Its Applications, Fourth Edition (2005)
  12. Linear Algebra, Geodesy, and GPS, with Kai Borre (1997)
  13. Wavelets and Filter Banks, with Truong Nguyen (1996)

References

| last = Roselle |first = D. P. |author-link = David Roselle | title = Award of the 1977 Chauvenet Prize to Professor Gilbert Strang | journal = The American Mathematical Monthly|year = 1977|volume = 84|issue = 6 |access-date= |page = 417 | citeseerx = 10.1.1.119.4043 |jstor=2321898|doi = 10.1080/00029890.1977.11994378 }} | title = MIT announces Professor Gilbert Strang as the first MathWorks Professor of Mathematics | date = 26 September 2011 | url = http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2011/mathworks-chair-strang.html | publisher = MIT News | location = Cambridge, MA | access-date = September 26, 2011

References

  1. Lu, Jun. (2021). "Revisit the Fundamental Theorem of Linear Algebra".
  2. (May 29, 2014). "Fundamental Theorem of Linear Algebra". Wolfram Research, Inc..
  3. Strang, William Gilbert. (1959). "Difference Methods for Mixed Boundary Value Problems".
  4. "18.065 Matrix Methods in Data Analysis & Signal Processing".
  5. (May 15, 2023). "Gil Strang's Final 18.06 Linear Algebra Lecture".
  6. (May 15, 2023). "Gil Strang's Final 18.06 Linear Algebra Lecture".
  7. "Gilbert Strang".
  8. "Fellows Program | SIAM".
  9. [https://www.ams.org/profession/fellows-list List of Fellows of the American Mathematical Society], retrieved 2013-08-05.
  10. Strang, Gilbert. (1973-11-01). "Piecewise polynomials and the finite element method". American Mathematical Society (AMS).
  11. Edelman, Alan. (2004). "Pascal matrices". Amer. Math. Monthly.
  12. "Recipients of the Deborah and Franklin Tepper Haimo Award for Distinguished College or University Teaching of Mathematics; Mathematical Association of America".
  13. [https://awards.mit.edu/awards/irwin-sizer-award-most-significant-improvement-mit-education Irwin Sizer Award], retrieved 2020-05-25.
  14. "Leadership {{!}} SIAM".
  15. Stenger, Allen. (April 16, 2023). "review of ''Introduction to Linear Algebra'', 6th edition by Gilbert Strang".
  16. "Linear Algebra for Everyone".
  17. Stenger, Allen. (May 10, 2022). "review of ''Linear Algebra for Everyone'' by Gilbert Strang".
  18. "Linear Algebra and Learning from Data".
  19. Stenger, Allen. (September 28, 2016). "review of ''Introduction to Linear Algebra'', 5th edition by Gilbert Strang".
  20. Stenger, Allen. (January 18, 2011). "review of ''Introduction to Linear Algebra'', 4th edition, by Gilbert Strange".
  21. Stenger, Allen. (December 28, 2021). "review of ''Linear Algebra and Its Applications'', 4th edition by Gilbert Strang".

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::

1934-birthsliving-people20th-century-american-mathematicians21st-century-american-mathematiciansmassachusetts-institute-of-technology-school-of-science-facultyamerican-mathematics-educatorsfellows-of-the-society-for-industrial-and-applied-mathematicsamerican-rhodes-scholarsmassachusetts-institute-of-technology-alumniuniversity-of-california,-los-angeles-alumnimathematicians-from-chicagomembers-of-the-united-states-national-academy-of-sciencesfellows-of-the-american-mathematical-societypresidents-of-the-society-for-industrial-and-applied-mathematicsforeign-members-of-the-russian-academy-of-sciencessloan-research-fellowsamerican-textbook-writers