Review: Differential Equations of My Young Years

Differential Equations of My Young Years by V.G. Maz'ya

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



The achievements of Russian-Jewish mathematician Vladimir Maz’ya in analysis and the theory of partial differential equations including work on Sobolev spaces and counterexamples related to Hilbert's 19th and 20th Problems can be found documented in Wikipedia, his own published output, and more... A rich trove of photographs liven the text and also make this a brisk read. Maz’ya mentions and recommends many works of literature and art. Unfortunately, the translation of many is a near miss, as in “The Cat and the Owl” for Edward Lear’s “The Owl and the Pussycat”.

Maz’ya’s recollections map a personal landscape of hopes realized and sorrows endured for a vivid picture of these times and this largely closed country. This memoir should be of interest to those looking for insight into daily life in Soviet Russia, especially life for Jewish families, as much if not more so than the author’s career as a mathematician.

(See my full review at MAA Reviews.)



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