Eric Schechter (born August 1, 1950) is an American

mathematician A mathematician is someone who uses an extensive knowledge of mathematics in their work, typically to solve mathematical problems. Mathematicians are concerned with numbers, data, quantity, mathematical structure, structure, space, Mathematica ...

, retired from

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private university, private research university in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and railroad magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provide ...

with the title of professor emeritus. His interests started primarily in

analysis Analysis (: analyses) is the process of breaking a complex topic or substance into smaller parts in order to gain a better understanding of it. The technique has been applied in the study of mathematics and logic since before Aristotle (38 ...

but moved into

mathematical logic Mathematical logic is the study of Logic#Formal logic, formal logic within mathematics. Major subareas include model theory, proof theory, set theory, and recursion theory (also known as computability theory). Research in mathematical logic com ...

. Schechter is best known for his 1996 book ''Handbook of Analysis and its Foundations'', which provides a novel approach to mathematical analysis and related topics at the graduate level.

Important works

Schechter has authored a number of articles in

, differential equations,

, and

set theory Set theory is the branch of mathematical logic that studies Set (mathematics), sets, which can be informally described as collections of objects. Although objects of any kind can be collected into a set, set theory – as a branch of mathema ...

. He is best known for writing two textbooks covering advanced material but written at an introductory level: * (2005) ''Classical and Nonclassical Logics'' (
(more information)
* (1996) ''Handbook of Analysis and its Foundations'' (
(more information)
''Handbook of Analysis and its Foundations'' was reviewed at length by the

Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM) is a professional society dedicated to applied mathematics, computational science, and data science through research, publications, and community. SIAM is the world's largest scientific soci ...

review, which wrote: :''Every once in a while a book comes along that so effectively redefines an educational enterprise -- in this case, graduate mathematical training -- and so effectively reexamines the hegemony of ideas prevailing in a discipline -- in this case, mathematical analysis -- that it deserves our careful attention. This is such a book.''
S.I.A.M. Review, Volume 40, Number 2, pp. 421-426. Schechter also maintains two webpages that are frequently cited: * ''Common Errors in Undergraduate Mathematics'

* ''A Home Page for the Axiom of Choice'

Politics

Schechter is involved in political activism of the democratic socialism, democratic socialist variety. His mathematical homepage includes a few anti-war statements, and his political home page includes a long essay about progressive ideology. He has worked as an organizer for the Nashville Peace Coalition, protesting the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. At a meeting for the living wage movement on Vanderbilt's campus, he remarked that it is hard to bring up politics in a non-political environment, and expressed that people did not talk much about politics in the mathematics department at Vanderbilt. His father, Henry Schechter, was a deputy of the

AFL-CIO The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) is a national trade union center that is the largest federation of unions in the United States. It is made up of 61 national and international unions, together r ...

. In 2010, Schechter ran for Tennessee's 5th Congressional District seat against incumbent congressman Jim Cooper, but was defeated in the Democratic primary. Schechter describes himself as "a different kind of Democrat."

References

External links

Eric Schechter's Mathematical Home PageEric Schechter's Political Philosophy Home PageEric Schechter's later Political Philosophy Home PageCongressional Campaign WebsiteAdditional Campaign Website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Schechter, Eric 1950 births Living people 20th-century American mathematicians 21st-century American mathematicians American logicians American mathematical analysts Vanderbilt University faculty