Mikhail Il'ich Zelikin (russian: Михаил Ильич Зеликин; born 11 February 1936) is a Russian mathematician, who works on

differential equation In mathematics, a differential equation is an equation that relates one or more unknown functions and their derivatives. In applications, the functions generally represent physical quantities, the derivatives represent their rates of change, an ...

s (in particular,

Riccati equation In mathematics, a Riccati equation in the narrowest sense is any first-order ordinary differential equation that is quadratic in the unknown function. In other words, it is an equation of the form : y'(x) = q_0(x) + q_1(x) \, y(x) + q_2(x) \, y^2(x ...

s),

optimal control theory Mathematical optimization (alternatively spelled ''optimisation'') or mathematical programming is the selection of a best element, with regard to some criterion, from some set of available alternatives. It is generally divided into two subfi ...

differential game In game theory, differential games are a group of problems related to the modeling and analysis of conflict in the context of a dynamical system. More specifically, a state variable or variables evolve over time according to a differential equatio ...

s (for instance,

Princess and monster game In game theory, a princess and monster game is a pursuit–evasion game played by two players in a region. Formal Definition In his book ''Differential Games'' (1965), Rufus Isaacs defined the game as: This game remained a well-known open p ...

), the theory of fields of extremals for

multiple integral In mathematics (specifically multivariable calculus), a multiple integral is a definite integral of a function of several real variables, for instance, or . Integrals of a function of two variables over a region in \mathbb^2 (the real-number ...

s, the geometry of

Grassmannian In mathematics, the Grassmannian is a space that parameterizes all -Dimension, dimensional linear subspaces of the -dimensional vector space . For example, the Grassmannian is the space of lines through the origin in , so it is the same as the ...

s. He proposed an explanation of

ball lightning Ball lightning is a rare and unexplained phenomenon described as luminescent, spherical objects that vary from pea-sized to several meters in diameter. Though usually associated with thunderstorms, the observed phenomenon is reported to last c ...

based on the hypothesis of

plasma Plasma or plasm may refer to: Science * Plasma (physics), one of the four fundamental states of matter * Plasma (mineral), a green translucent silica mineral * Quark–gluon plasma, a state of matter in quantum chromodynamics Biology * Blood pla ...

superconductivity Superconductivity is a set of physical properties observed in certain materials where electrical resistance vanishes and magnetic flux fields are expelled from the material. Any material exhibiting these properties is a superconductor. Unlike ...

.M.I. Zelikin. ''Superconductivity of plasma and fireballs''.
Journal of Mathematical Sciences, vol. 151, No. 6, pp. 3473–3496.

Biography

M. I. Zelikin was born 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 million ...

in 1936. He attended

Moscow State University M. V. Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU; russian: Московский государственный университет имени М. В. Ломоносова) is a public research university in Moscow, Russia and the most prestigious ...

( Faculty of Mechanics and Mathematics) in 1953. After graduating from the university in 1958, he works there and in

Steklov Institute of Mathematics Steklov Institute of Mathematics or Steklov Mathematical Institute (russian: Математический институт имени В.А.Стеклова) is a premier research institute based in Moscow, specialized in mathematics, and a part ...

. He got his Ph.D. under the supervision of Lev S. Pontryagin. M. I. Zelikin was awarded the Chebyshev Award in 1987 and the Lyapunov Award in 2010. He was elected a corresponding member of the

Russian Academy of Sciences The Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS; russian: Росси́йская акаде́мия нау́к (РАН) ''Rossíyskaya akadémiya naúk'') consists of the national academy of Russia; a network of scientific research institutes from across t ...

in 2011. Apart from mathematics, M. I. Zelikin is also known due to his activity in ecology, in particular, criticism of the

Northern river reversal The Northern river reversal or Siberian river reversal was an ambitious project to divert the flow of the Northern rivers in the Soviet Union, which "uselessly" drain into the Arctic Ocean, southwards towards the populated agricultural areas of C ...

. He wrote and published a book of memoirs «History of Evergreen Life» (russian: «История вечнозелёной жизни», — Moscow, 2001) about it.

Selected monographs

* ''Zelikin, M. I.; Borisov, V. F.'' Theory of chattering control. With applications to astronautics, robotics, economics, and engineering. Systems & Control: Foundations & Applications. Birkhäuser Boston, Inc., Boston, MA, 1994. xvi+242 pp. . * ''Zelikin, M. I.'' Control theory and optimization. I. Homogeneous spaces and the Riccati equation in the calculus of variations. Encyclopaedia of Mathematical Sciences, 86. Springer-Verlag, Berlin, 2000. xii+284 pp. . * ''Zelikin, M. I.'' Optimal control and variational calculus.

Editorial URSS Editorial URSS is a Russian scientific literature publishing house (textbooks, monographs, journals, proceedings of Russian institutes and universities, etc.). Since 1995, Editorial URSS has issued more than 9000 items in Russian, Spanish, and E ...

, Moscow, 2004 (in Russian) & 2010 (in Spanish).

References

*
All-Russian Mathematical Portal
(in Russian)
Webpage on the site of Russian Academy of Sciences
(in Russian).

Notes

20th-century Russian mathematicians Soviet mathematicians Moscow State University alumni Corresponding Members of the USSR Academy of Sciences 1936 births Living people {{Russia-mathematician-stub