Sanford Leonard Segal ( – ) was a mathematician and historian of science and mathematics at the

University of Rochester The University of Rochester (U of R, UR, or U of Rochester) is a private research university in Rochester, New York. The university grants undergraduate and graduate degrees, including doctoral and professional degrees. The University of Roc ...

. Mathematically he specialized in

analytic number theory In mathematics, analytic number theory is a branch of number theory that uses methods from mathematical analysis to solve problems about the integers. It is often said to have begun with Peter Gustav Lejeune Dirichlet's 1837 introduction of Diric ...

, and

complex analysis Complex analysis, traditionally known as the theory of functions of a complex variable, is the branch of mathematical analysis that investigates Function (mathematics), functions of complex numbers. It is helpful in many branches of mathemati ...

. He wrote the textbook ''Nine Introductions in Complex Analysis'' (1981), and the tome ''Mathematicians Under the Nazis'' (2003), a historical recount from that period. He also taught courses in

women's studies Women's studies is an academic field that draws on feminist and interdisciplinary methods to place women's lives and experiences at the center of study, while examining social and cultural constructs of gender; systems of privilege and oppress ...

, and

nuclear arms A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions (thermonuclear bomb), producing a nuclear explosion. Both bomb ...

. He was on the Committee of Actuarial Studies at the University of Rochester.

Life

In 1937 he was born into a conservative Jewish family. In 1958, he received his B.A. degree from

Wesleyan University Wesleyan University ( ) is a Private university, private liberal arts college, liberal arts university in Middletown, Connecticut. Founded in 1831 as a Men's colleges in the United States, men's college under the auspices of the Methodist Epis ...

with Honors in Mathematics and High Honors in Classical Civilization studies. In 1959 he spent a year as a

Fulbright student The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people of ...

Mainz Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main (river), Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-we ...

, Germany. In 1963, he earned his Ph.D. in Mathematics at

University of Colorado The University of Colorado (CU) is a system of public universities in Colorado. It consists of four institutions: University of Colorado Boulder, University of Colorado Colorado Springs, University of Colorado Denver, and the University of Co ...

under the supervision of Sarvadaman D. S. Chowla with the dissertation entitled ''The Error Term in the Formula for the Average Value of the Euler Phi Function''.

Career

After his Ph.D., he worked at the University of Rochester for 44 years until his retirement in 2008. In 1965 he received a grant from the

Fulbright Program The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people of ...

as a research fellow in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

, Austria. And in 1977, he received a grant from the National Institute for Pure and Applied Mathematics to teach in

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

. In 1981 he published ''Nine Introductions in Complex Analysis'' with North Holland Press (a revised edition was published in 2011 by Elsevier, which had taken over North Holland Press). He later received a grant from The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation to research history of science in

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

Princeton University Press Princeton University Press is an independent publisher with close connections to Princeton University. Its mission is to disseminate scholarship within academia and society at large. The press was founded by Whitney Darrow, with the financial su ...

later published the book ''Mathematicians Under the Nazis'' in 2003, which addresses the experience of mathematics academics in Nazi Germany. The book involved a lot of direct research and interviews with survivors and translations from German. He translated from French the book ''History of Mathematics: Highways and Byways'' in 2009. In addition, Segal published more than 45 papers on mathematics,

mathematics education In contemporary education, mathematics education, known in Europe as the didactics or pedagogy of mathematics – is the practice of teaching, learning and carrying out scholarly research into the transfer of mathematical knowledge. Although rese ...

, and the

history of science The history of science covers the development of science from ancient times to the present. It encompasses all three major branches of science: natural, social, and formal. Science's earliest roots can be traced to Ancient Egypt and Meso ...

. He was a member of the

Religious Society of Friends Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abili ...

. He was also a member of

Sigma Xi Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Honor Society () is a highly prestigious, non-profit honor society for scientists and engineers. Sigma Xi was founded at Cornell University by a junior faculty member and a small group of graduate students in 1886 ...

and of

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and the most prestigious, due in part to its long history and academic selectivity. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal a ...

. He married Rima Maxwell and had three children, Adam, Joshua, and Zoë. He died on May 7, 2010.

Academic publications

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Segal, Sanford Number theorists Wesleyan University alumni 20th-century American mathematicians 21st-century American mathematicians University of Rochester faculty 1937 births 2010 deaths