Robert Alexander Rankin
Encyclopedia
Robert Alexander Rankin (27 October 1915 – 27 January 2001) was a Scottish
mathematician
who worked in analytic number theory
.
Rankin's father, the Revd Oliver Shaw Rankin, was a minister who later became Professor of Old Testament
Language, Literature and Theology in the University of Edinburgh
.
Rankin was born in Garlieston
, Wigtownshire
, Scotland
, attended Fettes College
and graduated from Clare College, Cambridge
in 1937. In Cambridge
he was particularly influenced by J.E. Littlewood
and A.E. Ingham
.
He was elected a fellow of Clare College in 1939, but his career was interrupted by the Second World War, during which he worked on rocketry
research at Fort Halstead
. In 1945 he returned to Cambridge, and then moved to the University of Birmingham
in 1951 as Mason professor of mathematics. In 1954 he became Professor of Mathematics, Glasgow
University
, retiring in 1982.
In 1987 Rankin received the Senior Whitehead Prize
from the London Mathematical Society
.
He had a continuing interest in Srinivasa Ramanujan
, working initially with G.H. Hardy on Ramanujan's unpublished notes. His research interests lay in the distribution of prime numbers and in modular form
s; he developed what is now known as the Rankin–Selberg method
in 1939.
He died in Glasgow
in 2001.
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
mathematician
Mathematician
A mathematician is a person whose primary area of study is the field of mathematics. Mathematicians are concerned with quantity, structure, space, and change....
who worked in analytic number theory
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 Dirichlet's introduction of Dirichlet L-functions to give the first proof of Dirichlet's theorem on arithmetic...
.
Rankin's father, the Revd Oliver Shaw Rankin, was a minister who later became Professor of Old Testament
Old Testament
The Old Testament, of which Christians hold different views, is a Christian term for the religious writings of ancient Israel held sacred and inspired by Christians which overlaps with the 24-book canon of the Masoretic Text of Judaism...
Language, Literature and Theology in the University of Edinburgh
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583, is a public research university located in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university is deeply embedded in the fabric of the city, with many of the buildings in the historic Old Town belonging to the university...
.
Rankin was born in Garlieston
Garlieston
Garlieston is a small planned coastal village in south west Scotland founded circa 1790 by Lord Garlies.-Location & History:The village lies northwest of Whithorn and a few miles north of Cruggleton Castle which was abandoned in the 17th century...
, Wigtownshire
Wigtownshire
Wigtownshire or the County of Wigtown is a registration county in the Southern Uplands of south west Scotland. Until 1975, the county was one of the administrative counties used for local government purposes, and is now administered as part of the council area of Dumfries and Galloway...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, attended Fettes College
Fettes College
Fettes College is an independent school for boarding and day pupils in Edinburgh, Scotland with over two thirds of its pupils in residence on campus...
and graduated from Clare College, Cambridge
Clare College, Cambridge
Clare College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England.The college was founded in 1326, making it the second-oldest surviving college of the University after Peterhouse. Clare is famous for its chapel choir and for its gardens on "the Backs"...
in 1937. In Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
he was particularly influenced by J.E. Littlewood
John Edensor Littlewood
John Edensor Littlewood was a British mathematician, best known for the results achieved in collaboration with G. H. Hardy.-Life:...
and A.E. Ingham
Albert Ingham
Albert Edward Ingham was an English mathematician.Ingham was born in Northampton. He went to Stafford Grammar School and Trinity College, Cambridge . He obtained his Ph.D., which was supervised by John Edensor Littlewood, from the University of Cambridge. He supervised the Ph.D.s of C. Brian...
.
He was elected a fellow of Clare College in 1939, but his career was interrupted by the Second World War, during which he worked on rocketry
Rocket
A rocket is a missile, spacecraft, aircraft or other vehicle which obtains thrust from a rocket engine. In all rockets, the exhaust is formed entirely from propellants carried within the rocket before use. Rocket engines work by action and reaction...
research at Fort Halstead
Fort Halstead
Fort Halstead is a research site of Dstl, an Executive Agency of the UK Ministry of Defence. It is situated on the crest of the Kentish North Downs, overlooking the town of Sevenoaks...
. In 1945 he returned to Cambridge, and then moved to the University of Birmingham
University of Birmingham
The University of Birmingham is a British Redbrick university located in the city of Birmingham, England. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Birmingham Medical School and Mason Science College . Birmingham was the first Redbrick university to gain a charter and thus...
in 1951 as Mason professor of mathematics. In 1954 he became Professor of Mathematics, Glasgow
Professor of Mathematics, Glasgow
The Chair of Mathematics in the University of Glasgow was established in 1691. Previously, under James VI's Nova Erectio, the teaching of Mathematics had been the responsibility of the Regents.- List of Mathematics Professors :...
University
University of Glasgow
The University of Glasgow is the fourth-oldest university in the English-speaking world and one of Scotland's four ancient universities. Located in Glasgow, the university was founded in 1451 and is presently one of seventeen British higher education institutions ranked amongst the top 100 of the...
, retiring in 1982.
In 1987 Rankin received the Senior Whitehead Prize
Senior Whitehead Prize
The Senior Whitehead Prize of the London Mathematical Society is currently awarded in odd numbered years in memory of John Henry Constantine Whitehead, president of the LMS between 1953 and 1955. The Prize is awarded to mathematicians normally resident in the United Kingdom on 1 January of the...
from the London Mathematical Society
London Mathematical Society
-See also:* American Mathematical Society* Edinburgh Mathematical Society* European Mathematical Society* List of Mathematical Societies* Council for the Mathematical Sciences* BCS-FACS Specialist Group-External links:* * *...
.
He had a continuing interest in Srinivasa Ramanujan
Srinivasa Ramanujan
Srīnivāsa Aiyangār Rāmānujan FRS, better known as Srinivasa Iyengar Ramanujan was a Indian mathematician and autodidact who, with almost no formal training in pure mathematics, made extraordinary contributions to mathematical analysis, number theory, infinite series and continued fractions...
, working initially with G.H. Hardy on Ramanujan's unpublished notes. His research interests lay in the distribution of prime numbers and in modular form
Modular form
In mathematics, a modular form is a analytic function on the upper half-plane satisfying a certain kind of functional equation and growth condition. The theory of modular forms therefore belongs to complex analysis but the main importance of the theory has traditionally been in its connections...
s; he developed what is now known as the Rankin–Selberg method
Rankin–Selberg method
In mathematics, the Rankin–Selberg method, introduced by and , also known as the theory of integral representations of L-functions, is a technique for directly constructing and analytically continuing several important examples of automorphic L-functions. Some authors reserve the term for a...
in 1939.
He died in Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
in 2001.