Dennis M. DeTurck (born July 15, 1954) is an American mathematician known for his work in

partial differential equation In mathematics, a partial differential equation (PDE) is an equation which imposes relations between the various partial derivatives of a Multivariable calculus, multivariable function. The function is often thought of as an "unknown" to be sol ...

s and

Riemannian geometry Riemannian geometry is the branch of differential geometry that studies Riemannian manifolds, smooth manifolds with a ''Riemannian metric'', i.e. with an inner product on the tangent space at each point that varies smoothly from point to poin ...

, in particular contributions to the theory of the

Ricci flow In the mathematical fields of differential geometry and geometric analysis, the Ricci flow ( , ), sometimes also referred to as Hamilton's Ricci flow, is a certain partial differential equation for a Riemannian metric. It is often said to be analo ...

and the

prescribed Ricci curvature problem In Riemannian geometry, a branch of mathematics, the prescribed Ricci curvature problem is as follows: given a smooth manifold ''M'' and a symmetric 2-tensor ''h'', construct a metric on ''M'' whose Ricci curvature tensor equals ''h''. See also ...

. He first used the DeTurck trick to give an alternative proof of the short time existence of the Ricci flow, which has found other uses since then.

Education

DeTurck received a B.S. (1976) from

Drexel University Drexel University is a private research university with its main campus in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Drexel's undergraduate school was founded in 1891 by Anthony J. Drexel, a financier and philanthropist. Founded as Drexel Institute of Art, S ...

. He received an M.A. (1978) and Ph.D. (1980) in mathematics from the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

. His Ph.D. supervisor was

Jerry Kazdan Jerry Lawrence Kazdan (born 31 October 1937 in Detroit, Michigan) is an American mathematician noted for his work in differential geometry and the study of partial differential equations. His contributions include the Berger–Kazdan comparis ...

Career

DeTurck is currently Robert A. Fox Leadership Professor and Professor of Mathematics at the University of Pennsylvania, where he has been the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences since 2005 and Faculty Director of Riepe College House. In 2002, DeTurck won the Haimo Award from the

Mathematical Association of America The Mathematical Association of America (MAA) is a professional society that focuses on mathematics accessible at the undergraduate level. Members include university, college, and high school teachers; graduate and undergraduate students; pure a ...

for his teaching. Despite being recognized for excellence in teaching, he has been criticized for his belief that fractions are "as obsolete as Roman numerals" and suggesting that they not be taught to younger students. In January 2012, he shared the

Chauvenet Prize The Chauvenet Prize is the highest award for mathematical expository writing. It consists of a prize of $1,000 and a certificate, and is awarded yearly by the Mathematical Association of America in recognition of an outstanding expository article ...

with three mathematical collaborators. In 2012, he became a fellow of the

American Mathematical Society The American Mathematical Society (AMS) is an association of professional mathematicians dedicated to the interests of mathematical research and scholarship, and serves the national and international community through its publications, meetings, ...

.List of Fellows of the American Mathematical Society
retrieved 2012-11-10.

Selected publications

* * (explains the DeTurck trick; also se
the improved version

References

External links

Dennis DeTurck's homepage
1954 births Living people 20th-century American mathematicians 21st-century American mathematicians Mathematical analysts University of Pennsylvania alumni University of Pennsylvania faculty Mathematicians at the University of Pennsylvania Fellows of the American Mathematical Society Drexel University alumni Differential geometers {{US-mathematician-stub