Zhan Tao (; born April 1963) is a Chinese

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 served as president of Jilin University from 2008 to 2011 and president of

Shandong University Shandong University (, abbreviated as Shanda, , English abbreviation SDU) is a public research comprehensive university in Jinan, Shandong with one campus in Weihai, Shandong and one campus in Qingdao, Shandong and is supported directly by ...

from 2000 to 2008.

Biography

Zhan was born in April 1963, in Yanzhou County (now Yanzhou District of

Jining Jining () is a prefecture-level city in southwestern Shandong province. It borders Heze to the southwest, Zaozhuang to the southeast, Tai'an to the northeast, and the provinces of Henan and Jiangsu to the northwest and south respectively. Jinin ...

), Shandong. He graduated from the Department of Mathematics of

with a Ph.D. degree in mathematics under the supervision of

Pan Chengdong Pan Chengdong ( zh, c=潘承洞, p=Pān Chéngdòng; 26 May 1934 – 27 December 1997) was a Chinese mathematician who made numerous contributions to number theory Number theory (or arithmetic or higher arithmetic in older usage) is a br ...

in 1987. After graduation he became a professor of pure mathematics. He was deputy

dean Dean may refer to: People * Dean (given name) * Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin * Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk * Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean Titles * ...

of the Department of Mathematics and

vice president A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on ...

of Shandong University, and was the

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

of Shandong University from July 2000 until November 2008. He is now a standing member of the Chinese Association of Mathematics, deputy director of the Young Scientist Association of China, a standing member of the All China Youth Federation, vice president of the Shandong Youth Federation, and board chairman of the Shandong Association of Mathematics. Since joining the faculty of Shandong University in 1987, he has been working on classical problems in

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 ...

such as estimates of

exponential sum In mathematics, an exponential sum may be a finite Fourier series (i.e. a trigonometric polynomial), or other finite sum formed using the exponential function, usually expressed by means of the function :e(x) = \exp(2\pi ix).\, Therefore, a typic ...

s over primes, mean-value theorems for

arithmetic progression An arithmetic progression or arithmetic sequence () is a sequence of numbers such that the difference between the consecutive terms is constant. For instance, the sequence 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, 15, . . . is an arithmetic progression with a common differ ...

s, and Goldbach's conjecture. In particular, he has solved the quadratic almost Goldbach conjecture, and has successfully proved a new form of the Three-Prime theorem in arithmetic progressions to large moduli. His results have been generalized by Trevor Wooley in various directions. Zhan also participated in a co-research program at the

Albert Ludwigs University of Freiburg The University of Freiburg (colloquially german: Uni Freiburg), officially the Albert Ludwig University of Freiburg (german: Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg), is a public research university located in Freiburg im Breisgau, Baden-Württemb ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

from January, 1991 through December, 1992, and he has been invited by dozens of universities in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

, the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

and

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

for short academic visits.

Awards

Zhan has been awarded various prestigious honors including the Science and Technology Prize for Young Scientists of China, the Science and Technology Advancement Award by the Ministry of Education, the University Science and Technology Award of China, and the National Award for Outstanding Teaching Achievement.

External links

Biography of Zhantao
official website of

. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Zhan, Tao 1963 births Living people Educators from Shandong Presidents of Shandong University Academic staff of Jilin University People from Jining Mathematicians from Shandong