Arnold Ross
| Arnold Ephraim Ross | |
|---|---|
Ross in 1970
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| Born | Arnold Ephraim Chaimovich August 24, 1906 Chicago, Illinois, USA |
| Died | September 25, 2002 (aged 96) |
| Citizenship | United States |
| Fields | Number theory |
| Institutions | California Institute of Technology, St. Louis University, University of Notre Dame, Ohio State University |
| Alma mater | University of Chicago |
| Thesis | "On Representation of Integers by Indefinite Ternary Quadratic Forms of Quadratfrei Determinant" (1931) |
| Doctoral advisor | L. E. Dickson |
| Other academic advisors |
Samuil Shatunovsky, E. H. Moore |
| Known for |
Mathematics education (Ross Mathematics Program) |
| Spouse | Bertha (Bee) Halley Horecker Madeleine Green |
Arnold Ephraim Ross (August 24, 1906 – September 25, 2002) was a mathematician and educator who founded the Ross Mathematics Program, a number theory summer program for gifted high school students. He was born in Chicago, but spent his youth in Odessa, Ukraine, where he studied with Samuil Shatunovsky. Ross returned to Chicago and enrolled in University of Chicago graduate coursework under E. H. Moore, despite his lack of formal academic training. He received his Ph.D. and married his wife, Bee, in 1931.
Ross taught at several institutions including St. Louis University before becoming chair of University of Notre Dame's mathematics department in 1946. He started a teacher training program in mathematics that evolved into the Ross Mathematics Program in 1957 with the addition of high school students. The program moved with him to Ohio State University when he became their department chair in 1963. Though forced to retire in 1976, Ross ran the summer program until 2000. He had worked with over 2,000 students during more than forty summers.
The program is known as Ross's most significant work. Its attendees have since continued on to prominent research positions across the sciences. His program inspired several offshoots and was recognized by mathematicians as highly influential. Ross has received an honorary doctorate and several professional association awards for his instruction and service.
Ross was born Arnold Ephraim Chaimovich on August 24, 1906, in Chicago to Ukrainian-Jewish immigrants. He was an only child. His mother supported the family as a physical therapist. Ross returned to Odessa, Ukraine with his mother in 1909 for assistance from her extended family, and stayed once World War I and the Russian Revolution broke out. The two events led to widespread famine and economic woe in the region. Ross learned Russian at the behest of his mother, and developed a love of the theater and language. Ross's mother encouraged him to read, which he did often, and subscribed to a private library since Odessa had no public library. He credited his favorite uncle, an X-ray diagnostician, with introducing him to mathematics. The uncle had hired Samuil Shatunovsky to tutor his talented son, and Ross asked to join in. As money meant little due to inflation, Shatunovsky was paid to tutor the two boys with a pound of French hard candy. During this time, Ross was not taught with textbooks or lectured on geometric proofs. His geometry teacher would ask the class to prove and justify ideas on the blackboard per trial and error. Many universities were closed due to the famine, but Odessa University reopened and let a small group of adolescents attend, including Ross.
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