Andrey N. Kolmogorov
Wolf Prize Laureate in Mathematics 1980
The Prize Committee unanimously decided to select as co-recipients of the Wolf Prize for mathematics for 1980: Henri cartan and Andrey N. Kolmogorov.
Andrey N. Kolmogorov
Moscow State University
Moscow, U.S.S.R.
“for deep and original discoveries in Fourier analysis, probability theory, ergodic theory and dynamical systems.”
Both mathematicians are noteworthy for their breadth of interests and for the depth of the results they have obtained in the various fields of mathematics in which they have been active. Their interests were complementary and, taken together, span almost the whole range of mathematics.
The work of Professor Andrey N. Kolmogorov is characterized above all by great power. One of his first achievements was to give an example of an L1 function whose Fourier Series diverges everywhere. In addition the Kolmogorov-Seliverstov theorem remained for many years the deepest result on convergence of Fourier Series for L2 functions. However, it was his work in probability theory, which truly earned his reputation. In 1933 he wrote a fundamental book on the foundations of probability theory, which for the first time put probability theory on a completely secure footing, comparable to the rest of mathematics. He later introduced the critical concept of entropy, which enabled one to solve the famous isomorphism problem for Bernoulli shifts, and essentially revived the entire field of ergodic theory.
His interests include logic, approximation theory, and the theory of real variables, as well as many other subjects. His influence on students has also been very extensive.
