John von Neumann

John von Neumann
von Neumann in the 1940s
Member of the United States Atomic Energy Commission
In office March 15, 1955 – February 8, 1957
President	Dwight D. Eisenhower
Preceded by	Eugene M. Zuckert
Succeeded by	John S. Graham
Personal details
Born	Neumann János Lajos (1903-12-28)December 28, 1903 Budapest, Kingdom of Hungary
Died	February 8, 1957(1957-02-08) (aged 53) Washington, D.C., U.S.
Resting place	Princeton Cemetery
Citizenship	Hungary United States
Alma mater	Pázmány Péter University University of Berlin ETH Zürich
Known for	Mathematical formulation of quantum mechanics, Game theory, Spectral theory, Ergodic theory, von Neumann algebras, List of things named after John von Neumann
Spouses	Marietta Kövesi ​ ​ (m. 1930; div. 1937)​ Klára Dán ​ (m. 1938)​
Children	Marina von Neumann Whitman
Awards	Bôcher Memorial Prize (1938) Navy Distinguished Civilian Service Award (1946) Medal for Merit (1946) Medal of Freedom (1956) Enrico Fermi Award (1956) Carl-Gustaf Rossby Research Medal (1957)
Scientific career
Fields	Logic, mathematics, mathematical physics, theoretical physics, statistics, economics, computer science, theoretical biology, chemistry, computing
Institutions	University of Göttingen University of Berlin University of Hamburg Princeton University Institute for Advanced Study Los Alamos Laboratory National Defense Research Committee United States Department of Defense United States Atomic Energy Commission
Thesis	Az általános halmazelmélet axiomatikus felépítése (The axiomatic construction of general set theory)  (1925)
Doctoral advisor	Lipót Fejér
Other academic advisors	László Rátz Gábor Szegő Michael Fekete József Kürschák[1] David Hilbert Erhard Schmidt[2] Hermann Weyl George Pólya[3]
Doctoral students	Donald B. Gillies Israel Halperin[5] Friederich Mautner[6]
Other notable students	Eugene Wigner[7] Paul Halmos Peter Lax Benoit Mandelbrot[8]
Signature

John von Neumann (/vɒn ˈnɔɪmən/ von NOY-mən; Hungarian: Neumann János Lajos [ˈnɒjmɒn ˈjaːnoʃ ˈlɒjoʃ]; December 28, 1903 – February 8, 1957) was a Hungarian and American mathematician, physicist, computer scientist, engineer and polymath. He had perhaps the widest coverage of any mathematician of his time,^[9] integrating pure and applied sciences and making major contributions to many fields, including mathematics, physics, economics, computing, and statistics. He was a pioneer in building the mathematical framework of quantum physics, in the development of functional analysis, and in game theory, introducing or codifying concepts including cellular automata, the universal constructor and the digital computer. His analysis of the structure of self-replication preceded the discovery of the structure of DNA.

During World War II, von Neumann worked on the Manhattan Project. He developed the mathematical models behind the explosive lenses used in the implosion-type nuclear weapon.^[10] Before and after the war, he consulted for many organizations including the Office of Scientific Research and Development, the Army's Ballistic Research Laboratory, the Armed Forces Special Weapons Project and the Oak Ridge National Laboratory.^[11] At the peak of his influence in the 1950s, he chaired a number of Defense Department committees including the Strategic Missile Evaluation Committee and the ICBM Scientific Advisory Committee. He was also a member of the influential Atomic Energy Commission in charge of all atomic energy development in the country. He played a key role alongside Bernard Schriever and Trevor Gardner in the design and development of the United States' first ICBM programs.^[12] At that time he was considered the nation's foremost expert on nuclear weaponry and the leading defense scientist at the U.S. Department of Defense.

Von Neumann's contributions and intellectual ability drew praise from colleagues in physics, mathematics, and beyond. Accolades he received range from the Medal of Freedom to a crater on the Moon named in his honor.