China has problems to solve before its mathematics research can rise above WWII levels, scholar says
- Celebrated mathematician Yau Shing-Tung says country’s mathematics research not yet at level of the US in the 1940s
- Older, more conservative scholars are out of touch with latest research trends, leading younger talent to fall behind global leaders
“For any powerful modernised country, its achievements in maths must be at the forefront,” the geometry expert said during a talk on the status and future of Chinese mathematics on April 30.
With an understanding that mathematics was the foundation of all modern sciences and technologies, Yau said the US began sending students to Europe to study the subject in 1880.
Within three decades, Americans started to make breakthroughs in maths under the leadership of George Birkhoff, one of the top mathematicians of his generation. The country also took advantage of the two world wars to absorb a large number of European mathematicians, Yau said.
By the 1960s, the US had become the world leader in mathematics research. “Currently, China’s mathematics has not reached their level in the 1940s,” he said.