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Robert ConnellyModern American mathematician
Date of Birth: 15.07.1942
Country:  USA |
Content:
- Education and Career
- Scientific Contributions
- Dense Packing and Straightening Broken Lines
- Flexible Polyhedra
- Recognition
Education and Career
Robert Connelly is a renowned American mathematician specializing in discrete geometry and flexible structures. In 1964, he earned a Bachelor's degree in mathematics from the Carnegie Institute of Technology (now Carnegie Mellon University). He subsequently obtained his PhD in mathematics from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, in 1969.
Since 1969, Connelly has been a faculty member at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. He has held visiting positions at the Institute for Advanced Scientific Studies in France, Syracuse University, the Universities of Dijon and Savoy in France, the University of Budapest, the University of Montreal, Bielefeld University in Germany, the University of Washington in Seattle, the University of Calgary, and the University of Cambridge. From 1996 to 1999, he served as Chair of the Cornell University Mathematics Department.
Scientific Contributions
Combinatorial Geometry and Structural RigidityConnelly's primary research interests lie in combinatorial geometry, particularly in the study of structural rigidity, stability, and the flexibility of polyhedra, frameworks, and tensegrity structures. His work in these areas has employed energy methods and higher-order infinitesimal flexings.
Dense Packing and Straightening Broken Lines
Connelly has addressed unresolved problems in dense packing and the straightening of broken lines. His research has made significant contributions to these areas.
Flexible Polyhedra
Connelly is well-known for his invention of a self-intersecting, flexible polyhedron. This design was the subject of a plenary lecture at the International Congress of Mathematicians in 1978. A model of his flexible polyhedron is displayed at the National Museum of American History.
Recognition
In recognition of his contributions to mathematics, the asteroid 4816 (Connolly) was named after Robert Connelly.
