Jonas Kubilius (27 July 1921 – 30 October 2011) was a
Lithuanian
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, structure, space, models, and change.
History
On ...
who worked in
probability theory
Probability theory is the branch of mathematics concerned with probability. Although there are several different probability interpretations, probability theory treats the concept in a rigorous mathematical manner by expressing it through a set ...
and
number theory
Number theory (or arithmetic or higher arithmetic in older usage) is a branch of pure mathematics devoted primarily to the study of the integers and integer-valued functions. German mathematician Carl Friedrich Gauss (1777–1855) said, "Mat ...
. He was
rector
Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to:
Style or title
*Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations
*Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...
of
Vilnius University
Vilnius University ( lt, Vilniaus universitetas) is a public research university, oldest in the Baltic states and in Northern Europe outside the United Kingdom (or 6th overall following foundations of Oxford, Cambridge, St. Andrews, Glasgow and ...
for 32 years, and served one term in the
Lithuanian parliament.
Life and education
Kubilius was born in Fermos village, Eržvilkas county,
Jurbarkas district municipality,
Lithuania on 27 July 1921. He graduated from Raseiniai high school in 1940 and entered
Vilnius University
Vilnius University ( lt, Vilniaus universitetas) is a public research university, oldest in the Baltic states and in Northern Europe outside the United Kingdom (or 6th overall following foundations of Oxford, Cambridge, St. Andrews, Glasgow and ...
, from which he graduated ''
summa cum laude'' in 1946 after taking off a year to teach mathematics in middle school.
Kubilius received the
Candidate of Sciences
Candidate of Sciences (russian: кандидат наук, translit=kandidat nauk) is the first of two doctoral level scientific degrees in Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States. It is formally classified as UNESCO's ISCED level 8, "d ...
degree in 1951 from
Leningrad University
Saint Petersburg State University (SPBU; russian: Санкт-Петербургский государственный университет) is a public research university in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Founded in 1724 by a decree of Peter the G ...
.
His thesis, written under
Yuri Linnik
Yuri Vladimirovich Linnik (russian: Ю́рий Влади́мирович Ли́нник; January 8, 1915 – June 30, 1972) was a Soviet mathematician active in number theory, probability theory and mathematical statistics.
Linnik was born in B ...
, was titled ''Geometry of Prime Numbers''.
He received the
Doctor of Science
Doctor of Science ( la, links=no, Scientiae Doctor), usually abbreviated Sc.D., D.Sc., S.D., or D.S., is an academic research degree awarded in a number of countries throughout the world. In some countries, "Doctor of Science" is the degree used f ...
degree (
habilitation) in 1957 from the
Steklov Institute of Mathematics in
Moscow
Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 millio ...
.
Career
Kubilius had simultaneous careers at
Vilnius University
Vilnius University ( lt, Vilniaus universitetas) is a public research university, oldest in the Baltic states and in Northern Europe outside the United Kingdom (or 6th overall following foundations of Oxford, Cambridge, St. Andrews, Glasgow and ...
and at the
Lithuanian Academy of Sciences
The Lithuanian Academy of Sciences or LMA ( lt, Lietuvos mokslų akademija) is a state-funded independent organization in Lithuania dedicated for science and research. Its mission is to mobilize prominent scientists and initiate activities that ...
. He continued working at the university after receiving his bachelor's degree in 1946, and worked as a lecturer and assistant professor after receiving his
Candidate
A candidate, or nominee, is the prospective recipient of an award or honor, or a person seeking or being considered for some kind of position; for example:
* to be elected to an office — in this case a candidate selection procedure occurs.
* ...
degree in 1951. In 1958 he was promoted to professor and was elected
rector
Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to:
Style or title
*Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations
*Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...
of the university. He retired from the rector's position in 1991 after serving almost 33 years, and remained a professor in the university.
During the
Khrushchev Thaw in the middle 1950s there were attempts to make the university "Lithuanian" by encouraging the use of the
Lithuanian language
Lithuanian ( ) is an Eastern Baltic language belonging to the Baltic branch of the Indo-European language family. It is the official language of Lithuania and one of the official languages of the European Union. There are about 2.8 mill ...
in place of
Russian
Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including:
*Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
and to revive the Department of Lithuanian Literature. This work was started by the rector
Juozas Bulavas, but
Stalinists
Stalinism is the means of governing and Marxist-Leninist policies implemented in the Soviet Union from 1927 to 1953 by Joseph Stalin. It included the creation of a one-party totalitarian police state, rapid industrialization, the theory ...
objected and Bulavas was dismissed. Kubilius replaced him as rector and was more successful in resisting pressure to
Russify
Russification (russian: русификация, rusifikatsiya), or Russianization, is a form of cultural assimilation in which non-Russians, whether involuntarily or voluntarily, give up their culture and language in favor of the Russian cultur ...
the University: he returned Lithuanian language and culture to the forefront of the University. Česlovas Masaitis attributes Kubilius's success to "his ability to manipulate within the complex bureaucratic system of the Soviet Union and mainly because of his international recognition due to his scientific achievements."
Kubilius also encouraged the faculty to write research papers in Lithuanian, English, German, and French, as well as in Russian, and he himself wrote several textbooks in Lithuanian.
Jonas Kubilius known by pseudonym Bernotas was also involved in
Lithuanian partisan
The Lithuanian partisans () were partisan (military), partisans who waged a guerrilla warfare in Lithuania against the Soviet Union in 1944–1953. Similar Anti-Soviet partisans, anti-Soviet resistance groups, also known as Forest Brothers and c ...
movement. According to some sources Lithuanian partisans suggested him to continue studies and stay alive to work for Lithuania in the future.
In 1952 Kubilius became an employee of the
Lithuanian Academy of Sciences
The Lithuanian Academy of Sciences or LMA ( lt, Lietuvos mokslų akademija) is a state-funded independent organization in Lithuania dedicated for science and research. Its mission is to mobilize prominent scientists and initiate activities that ...
in the Physics, Mathematics and Astronomy Sector. He initially promoted the development of
probability theory
Probability theory is the branch of mathematics concerned with probability. Although there are several different probability interpretations, probability theory treats the concept in a rigorous mathematical manner by expressing it through a set ...
in Lithuania, and later the development of
differential equations and
mathematical logic
Mathematical logic is the study of formal logic within mathematics. Major subareas include model theory, proof theory, set theory, and recursion theory. Research in mathematical logic commonly addresses the mathematical properties of formal ...
. In 1956 the Physical and Technical Institute was reorganized and Kubilius became head of the new Mathematical Sector.
When he became rector of Vilnius University in 1958 he gave up his duties as head and was succeeded by
Vytautas Statulevičius in 1960.
In 1962 he was elected a member of the Academy.
He held a position as Principal Scientific Worker at the Institute of Mathematics and Informatics,
which split from the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences and is now an independent state scientific institute.
Kubilius's scientific work was in the areas of
number theory
Number theory (or arithmetic or higher arithmetic in older usage) is a branch of pure mathematics devoted primarily to the study of the integers and integer-valued functions. German mathematician Carl Friedrich Gauss (1777–1855) said, "Mat ...
and
probability theory
Probability theory is the branch of mathematics concerned with probability. Although there are several different probability interpretations, probability theory treats the concept in a rigorous mathematical manner by expressing it through a set ...
.
The
Turán–Kubilius inequality and the
Kubilius model in
probabilistic number theory
In mathematics, Probabilistic number theory is a subfield of number theory, which explicitly uses probability to answer questions about the integers and integer-valued functions. One basic idea underlying it is that different prime numbers are, in ...
are named after him. Eugenijus Manstavičius and Fritz Schweiger wrote about Kubilius's work in 1992, "the most impressive work has been done on the statistical theory of arithmetic functions which almost created a new research area called Probabilistic Number Theory. A monograph devoted to this topic was translated into English in 1964 and became very influential." (The monograph is ''Probabilistic Methods in the Theory of Numbers.'')
Kubilius organized the first
mathematical olympiad
Mathematics competitions or mathematical olympiads are competitive events where participants complete a mathematics, math test. These tests may require multiple choice or numeric answers, or a detailed written solution or proof.
International math ...
in Lithuania in 1951, and he wrote books of problems for students to use in preparing for the olympiads.
He was a past president of the
Lithuanian Mathematical Society.
In addition to his scientific and administrative work, Kubilius was a member of the
Seimas
The Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublikos Seimas), or simply the Seimas (), is the unicameral parliament of Lithuania. The Seimas constitutes the legislative branch of government in Lithuania, enacting laws and amendme ...
(Lithuanian parliament) from 1992 to 1996.
Honors and awards
![Jonas Kubilius 2021 stamp of Lithuania](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7d/Jonas_Kubilius_2021_stamp_of_Lithuania.jpg)
*
Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas
The Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas is the Lithuanian Presidential Award which was re-instituted to honour the citizens of Lithuania for outstanding performance in civil and public offices. Foreign nationals may also be awarded this O ...
Selected publications
*
References
Further reading
*
External links
*
*
Jonas Kubilius home page at Vilnius UniversityJonas Kubilius home page at the Institute of Mathematics and Informatics*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kubilius, Jonas
Soviet mathematicians
21st-century Lithuanian mathematicians
20th-century Lithuanian mathematicians
Number theorists
Academic staff of Vilnius University
Probability theorists
Saint Petersburg State University alumni
Rectors of Vilnius University
Recipients of the Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas
1921 births
2011 deaths
Burials at Antakalnis Cemetery