Robin Wilson (mathematician)

This article is about the mathematician. For the musician, see Robin Wilson (musician).
The Honourable
Robin Wilson
Born (1943-12-05) 5 December 1943
United Kingdom
Citizenship United Kingdom
Fields Graph Theory
Institutions Open University,
Pembroke College, Oxford, Gresham College
Alma mater University College School, Hampstead, London
University of Oxford (Balliol College)
University of Pennsylvania
Doctoral advisor Nesmith Ankeny

Robin James Wilson (born 5 December 1943) is an emeritus professor in the Department of Mathematics at the Open University, having previously been Head of the Pure Mathematics Department and Dean of the Faculty.[1] He was a Stipendiary Lecturer at Pembroke College, Oxford[2] and, as of 2006, Professor of Geometry at Gresham College, London, where he has also been a visiting professor.[3] On occasion, he guest teaches at Colorado College.

From January 1999 to September 2003, Robin Wilson was editor-in-chief of the European Mathematical Society Newsletter.[4]

He is the son of Harold Wilson, former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. He is married with two daughters.[5]

Education

Mathematics

Wilson's academic interests lie in graph theory, particularly in colouring problems, e.g. the four colour problem, and algebraic properties of graphs.

He also researches the history of mathematics, particularly British mathematics and mathematics in the 17th century and the period 1860 to 1940 and the history of graph theory and combinatorics.

In 1974 he won the Lester R. Ford Award from the Mathematical Association of America for his expository article An introduction to matroid theory.[6][7]

Due to his collaboration on a 1977 paper[8] with the noted Hungarian mathematician Paul Erdős, Wilson has an Erdős number of 1.

In July 2008 he published a study of the mathematical work of Lewis Carroll, the creator of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass — Lewis Carroll in Numberland: His Fantastical Mathematical Logical Life.[9]

He is President of the British Society for the History of Mathematics.[10]

Other interests

He has strong interests in music, including the operas of Gilbert and Sullivan, and is the co-author (with Frederic Lloyd) of Gilbert and Sullivan: The Official D'Oyly Carte Picture History.[11] In 2007 he was a guest on Private Passions, the biographical music discussion programme on BBC Radio 3.[12]

Other publications

Wilson has written or edited about thirty books to date, including popular books on sudoku and the Four Color Theorem:

References

  1. ↑ "Prof Robin Wilson". Open University - Department of Mathematics And Statistics. Retrieved 8 December 2013.
  2. ↑ Pembroke College Website
  3. ↑ "Professor Robin Wilson". Gresham College. Retrieved 8 December 2013.
  4. ↑ European Mathematical Society Newsletter, No 49, September 2003, ISSN 1027-488X
  5. ↑ John Crace (7 October 2008). "Serious showman". The Guardian. Retrieved 8 December 2013.
  6. ↑ Paul R. Halmos – Lester R. Ford Awards, Mathematical Association of America
  7. ↑ Wilson, R. J. (1973). "An introduction to matroid theory". Amer. Math. Monthly. 80: 500–525. doi:10.2307/2319608.
  8. ↑ "On the chromatic index of almost all graphs". Journal of Combinatorial Theory, Series B. 23: 255–257. doi:10.1016/0095-8956(77)90039-9.
  9. ↑ Allen Lane, 2008. ISBN 978-0-7139-9757-6
  10. ↑ "Professor Robin Wilson". Open University. Retrieved 8 December 2013.
  11. ↑ Knopf, 1984. ISBN 978-0-394-54113-6
  12. ↑ BBC Radio 3
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