Richard M. Schoen

Mathematician Class of August 1983
location icon Location
Berkeley, California
age iconAge
33 at time of award

About Richard's Work

Richard Schoen is a mathematician specializing in differential geometry and partial differential equations.

Schoen studies nonlinear phenomena arising from geometric problems.  The methods he employs come primarily from the theory of partial differential equations and the calculus of variations.  His concrete results include the solution of the positive mass conjecture, the Yamabe problem, and new geometric methods in partial differential equations.  Schoen’s work has contributed to the theories of least area surfaces, or soap films, and general relativity.

Biography

Schoen has been a professor of mathematics at New York University (1978-1980), the University of California, Berkeley (1980-1985), and the University of California, San Diego (1985-1987).  He was a Distinguished Visiting Professor at the Institute for Advanced Study (1992-93), and is the editor and co-editor of several mathematical journals, including the Journal of Differential Geometry, Calculus of Variations and PDE, and Communications in Contemporary Mathematics.  Since 1987, he has taught at Stanford University where he is the Anne T. and Robert M. Bass Professor of Humanities and Sciences. 

Schoen received a B.S. (1972) from the University of Dayton and a Ph.D. (1976) from Stanford University.

Last updated January 1, 2005.

Published on August 1, 1983

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