Richard von Mises
Richard Martin Edler von Mises[1] (German: [fɔn ˈmiːzəs]; 19 April 1883 – 14 July 1953) was an Austrian scientist and mathematician who worked on solid mechanics, fluid mechanics, aerodynamics, aeronautics, statistics and probability theory. He held the position of Gordon McKay Professor of Aerodynamics and Applied Mathematics at Harvard University. He described his work in his own words shortly before his death as:
This article is about the statistician. Not to be confused with his brother, Austrian economist Ludwig von Mises.
Richard von Mises
Although best known for his mathematical work, von Mises also contributed to the philosophy of science as a neo-positivist and empiricist, following the line of Ernst Mach. Historians of the Vienna Circle of logical empiricism recognize a "first phase" from 1907 through 1914 with Philipp Frank, Hans Hahn, and Otto Neurath.[3] His older brother, Ludwig von Mises, held an opposite point of view with respect to positivism and epistemology. His brother developed praxeology, an a priori view.[4]
During his time in Istanbul, Mises maintained close contact with Philipp Frank,[5] a logical positivist and Professor of Physics in Prague until 1938. His literary interests included the Austrian novelist Robert Musil and the poet Rainer Maria Rilke, on whom he became a recognized expert.[6]
Contributions[edit]
In aerodynamics, von Mises made advances in boundary-layer flow theory and airfoil design. He developed the distortion energy theory of stress, an important factor in material strength calculations.
His ideas were not universally well received, although Alexander Ostrowski had said of him: "Only with the appointment of Richard von Mises to the University of Berlin did the first serious German school of applied mathematics with a broad sphere of influence come into existence. Von Mises was an incredibly dynamic person and at the same time amazingly versatile like Runge. He was especially well versed in the realm of technology." and also wrote "Because of his dynamic personality his occasional major blunders were somehow tolerated. One has even forgiven him his theory of probability." Yet Andrey Kolmogorov, whose rival axiomatisation was better received, was less severe: "The basis for the applicability of the results of the mathematical theory of probability to real 'random phenomena' must depend on some form of the frequency concept of probability, the unavoidable nature of which has been established by von Mises in a spirited manner."
In probability theory, he proposed the famous "birthday problem".[9] He also defined the impossibility of a gambling system.[10][11]
In solid mechanics, von Mises contributed to the theory of plasticity by formulating the von Mises yield criterion, independently of Tytus Maksymilian Huber.
He is often credited for the Principle of Maximum Plastic Dissipation.
The Gesellschaft für Angewandte Mathematik und Mechanik[12] (Society of Applied Mathematics and Mechanics) awards a Richard von Mises Prize[13] since 1989.