Philip J. Davis is an American applied mathematician. He is known for his work in numerical analysis and approximation theory, as well as his investigations in the history and philosophy of mathematics. Currently a Professor Emeritus from the Division of Applied Mathematics at Brown University, he earned his degrees in mathematics from Harvard University (Ph.D., 1950; advisor, Ralph P. Boas, Jr.). Applied mathematics is a branch of mathematics that concerns itself with the application of mathematical knowledge to other domains. ... Numerical analysis is the study of algorithms for the problems of continuous mathematics (as distinguished from discrete mathematics) using basic arithmetical operations like addition. ... In mathematics, approximation theory is concerned with how functions can be approximated with other, simpler, functions, and with characterising in a quantitative way the errors introduced thereby. ... Philosophy of mathematics is that branch of philosophy which attempts to answer questions such as: why is mathematics useful in describing nature?, in which sense(s), if any, do mathematical entities such as numbers exist? and why and how are mathematical statements true?. Various approaches to answering these questions will... Brown University is an Ivy League university located in Providence, Rhode Island. ... Harvard University is a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA and a member of the Ivy League. ... Doctor of Philosophy (Ph. ... Ralph Philip Boas, Jr (August 8, 1913 - July 25, 1992) was a mathematician, teacher, and journal editor. ...

Born in Lawrence, Massachusetts, in 1923, he served briefly in the Air Force in WWII before joining the National Bureau of Standards (now the National Institute of Standards and Technology). He became Chief of Numerical Analysis there and worked on the well-known Abromowitz and Stegun Handbook of Mathematical Functions before joining Brown in 1963. Official language(s) English Capital Boston Largest city Boston Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 44th 27,360 km² 305 km 80 km 25. ... 1923 (MCMXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... An air force is a military organization that primarily operates in air-based war. ... German soldiers at the Battle of Stalingrad World War II was the most extensive and costly armed conflict in the history of the world, involving the great majority of the worlds nations, being fought simultaneously in several major theatres, and costing tens of millions of lives. ... As a non-regulatory agency of the United States Department of Commerce’s Technology Administration, the National Institute of Standards (NIST) develops and promotes measurement, standards, and technology to enhance productivity, facilitate trade, and improve the quality of life. ... The National Institute of Standards and Technology (or NIST) formerly known as The National Bureau of Standards is a non regulatory agency of the United States Department of Commerce’s Technology Administration. ...

He was awarded the Chauvenet Prize for mathematical writing in 1963 for an article on the gamma function, and has won numerous other prizes before. He has also been a frequent invited lecturer. In addition, he has authored several books. Among the best known are The Mathematical Experience (with Reuben Hersch), a popular survey of modern mathematics; Methods of Numerical Integration (with Philip Rabinowitz), long the standard work on the subject of quadrature; and Interpolation and Approximation, still an important reference in this area. He has also written an autobiography, The Education of a Mathematician. Other books of his also include autobiographical sections. He has published fiction as well. The Gamma function along an interval In mathematics, the Gamma function extends the factorial function to the complex numbers. ... Quadrature, derived from Latin quadrare, is a term with various meanings: in astronomy, the line tangent to an objects orbit defines the objects quadrature. ...

External Links

• Personal web site at Brown University.
• List of Ph.D. students at the Math. Genealogy Project.