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{{Short description|American mathematician}}
{{Short description|American mathematician (1940–2020)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2023}}
{{Infobox scientist
{{Infobox scientist
| name = Michael Spivak
| name = Michael Spivak
| image = Spivak Michael.jpg
| image = Spivak Michael.jpg
| image_size =
| caption = Spivak in 1974
| caption = Michael Spivak, Berkeley 1974.
| birth_date = {{birth date|1940|05|25}}
| birth_date = {{birth date|1940|05|25}}
| birth_place = [[Queens]], [[New York (state)|New York]]
| birth_place = [[Queens]], New York City, U.S.
| death_date = {{death date and age|2020|10|01|1940|05|25}}
| death_date = {{death date and age|2020|10|01|1940|05|25}}
| death_place = [[Houston]], [[Texas]]
| death_place = [[Houston, Texas]], U.S.
| nationality = American
| fields = {{plainlist|
| fields = [[Mathematics]]<br />[[Differential geometry]]
*[[Mathematics]]
*[[Differential geometry]]}}
| workplaces =
| alma_mater = [[Princeton University]]
| alma_mater = {{plainlist|
*[[Harvard University]] ([[Bachelor of Arts|AB]])
*[[Princeton University]] ([[Master of Arts|MA]], [[Doctor of Philosophy|PhD]])}}
| thesis_title = On Spaces Satisfying Poincaré Duality
| thesis_title = On Spaces Satisfying Poincaré Duality
| thesis_url = https://search.proquest.com/docview/302162093
| thesis_url = https://search.proquest.com/docview/302162093
| thesis_year = 1964
| thesis_year = 1964
| doctoral_advisor = [[John Milnor]]
| doctoral_advisor = [[John Milnor]]
| known_for = {{plainlist|
| doctoral_students =
| known_for = ''[[The Hitchhiker's Guide to Calculus]]''<br /> ''[[Calculus on Manifolds (book)|Calculus on Manifolds: A Modern Approach to Classical Theorems of Advanced Calculus]]''<br /> ''A Comprehensive Introduction to Differential Geometry''<br />[[MathTime]]
*''The Hitchhiker's Guide to Calculus''
*''[[Calculus on Manifolds (book)|Calculus on Manifolds: A Modern Approach to Classical Theorems of Advanced Calculus]]''
*''A Comprehensive Introduction to Differential Geometry''
*[[MathTime]]}}
| awards = [[Leroy P. Steele Prize]] for expository writing, 1985
| awards = [[Leroy P. Steele Prize]] for Expository Writing (1985)
}}
}}
⚫
'''Michael David Spivak'''<ref name="genealogy" /> (May 25, 1940{{spaced ndash}}October 1, 2020)<ref name="nams">{{Cite journal |date=October 1985 |title=1985 Steele Prizes Awarded at Summer Meeting in Laramie |url=https://www.ams.org/journals/notices/198510/198510FullIssue.pdf |journal=Notices of the American Mathematical Society |volume=32 |issue=243 |page=576 |access-date=November 30, 2021 |archive-date=November 30, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211130031304/https://www.ams.org/journals/notices/198510/198510FullIssue.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="tugboat">{{Cite journal |last=Beeton |first=Barbara |year=2021 |title=Michael D. Spivak, 1940–2020 |url=https://tug.org/TUGboat/tb42-3/tb132beeton-spivak.pdf |journal=TUGboat |volume=42 |issue=3 |pages=226–227 |doi=10.47397/tb/42-3/tb132beeton-spivak |s2cid=244121636 |access-date=29 November 2021 |archive-date=November 30, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211130194532/https://tug.org/TUGboat/tb42-3/tb132beeton-spivak.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> was an American [[mathematician]] specializing in [[differential geometry]], an expositor of mathematics, and the founder of Publish-or-Perish Press. Spivak was the author of the five-volume ''A Comprehensive Introduction to Differential Geometry'', which won the [[Leroy P. Steele Prize]] for expository writing in 1985.


⚫
== Biography ==
⚫
'''Michael David Spivak'''<ref name="genealogy" /> (25 May 1940{{spaced ndash}}1 October 2020)<ref name="nams">Biographical sketch in ''[https://www.ams.org/journals/notices/198510/198510FullIssue.pdf Notices of the AMS]'', Vol. 32, 1985, p. 576.</ref> <ref name="tugboat"> {{cite journal |last1=Beeton |first1=Barbara |title=Michael D. Spivak, 1940 - 2020 |url= https://tug.org/TUGboat/tb42-3/tb132beeton-spivak.pdf |journal=TUGboat |year=2021 |volume=42 |issue=3 |pages=226–227 |doi=10.47397/tb/42-3/tb132beeton-spivak |s2cid=244121636 |access-date=29 November 2021}}</ref> was an American [[mathematician]] specializing in [[differential geometry]], an expositor of [[mathematics]], and the founder of Publish-or-Perish Press. Spivak was the author of the five-volume ''A Comprehensive Introduction to Differential Geometry''.
Spivak was born in [[Queens, New York]]. He received his [[Bachelor of Arts]] (A.B.) from [[Harvard University]] in 1960,<ref name=nams /> and in 1964 he received his [[Ph.D.]] from [[Princeton University]] under the supervision of [[John Milnor]], with his thesis, ''On Spaces Satisfying [[Poincaré duality|Poincaré Duality]]''.<ref name="genealogy">{{MathGenealogy|id=15162}}</ref> Afterwards, Spivak taught as a full-time Math Lecturer at [[Brandeis University]], whilst writing ''[[Calculus on Manifolds (book)|Calculus on Manifolds: A Modern Approach to Classical Theorems of Advanced Calculus]]'', which was later translated into Polish, Spanish, Japanese and Russian. In 1967, he won a year-long [[National Science Foundation]] fellowship to Princeton’s [[Institute for Advanced Study]], after which Spivak returned to Brandeis as Assistant Professor of Mathematics until 1970. In his last year as Assistant Professor, he published the first two volumes of "what would become a five-volume masterpiece with the daunting title, ''Comprehensive Introduction to Differential Geometry''."<ref>[https://www.georgevecsey.com/home/one-brilliant-classmate-remembers-another One Brilliant Classmate Remembers Another]</ref> In 1985, Spivak received the [[Leroy P. Steele Prize]] for this five-volume set.<ref>[[Leroy P. Steele Prize]]</ref>


In 2004, Spivak lectured on elementary physics.<ref>{{multiref|{{Cite web |date=2012-09-03 |title=Prof. Michael D. Spivak Pathway Lectures |url=http://www.math.hc.keio.ac.jp/coe/videos/spivak2004/ |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120903133348/http://www.math.hc.keio.ac.jp/coe/videos/spivak2004/ |archive-date=2012-09-03 }}
⚫
==Biography==
⚫
|{{Cite web |last=Spivak |first=Michael |date=March 2004 |title=Elementary mechanics from a mathematician's viewpoint |url=http://alpha.math.uga.edu/~shifrin/Spivak_physics.pdf |access-date=October 3, 2017 |archive-date=October 13, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171013191748/http://alpha.math.uga.edu/~shifrin/Spivak_physics.pdf |url-status=live }}}}</ref> Spivak's book, ''Physics for Mathematicians: Mechanics I'' (published December 6, 2010), contains the material that these lectures stemmed from and more.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Spivak |first=Michael |title=Physics for Mathematicians, Mechanics I |year=2010 |publisher=Publish or Perish |isbn=978-0-914098-32-4}}</ref> Spivak was also the designer of the [[MathTime]] Professional 2 fonts (which are widely used in academic publishing)<ref>{{Cite web |title=MathTime Professional 2 Fonts |url=http://pctex.com/mtpro2.html |access-date=October 15, 2013 |website=pctex.com |archive-date=October 29, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029012541/http://pctex.com/mtpro2.html |url-status=live }}</ref> and the creator of the TV series ''[[Science International]]''.<ref>{{Cite magazine |date=April 7, 1983 |title=Snippets of science from a goon |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bXxI8lC4cEwC&pg=PA36 |magazine=New Scientist |publisher=Reed Business Information |volume=98 |number=1352}}</ref>
Spivak was born in [[Queens]], [[New York (state)|New York]]. He received an [[Bachelor of Arts|A.B.]] from [[Harvard University]] in 1960,<ref name="nams"/> while in 1964 he received a [[Doctor of Philosophy|Ph.D.]] from [[Princeton University]] under the supervision of [[John Milnor]], with thesis ''On Spaces Satisfying Poincaré Duality''.<ref name="genealogy">{{MathGenealogy|id=15162}}</ref> In 1985 Spivak received the [[Leroy P. Steele Prize]].


Spivak died on October 1, 2020.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Michael Spivak: A Memorial |journal=Notices of the American Mathematical Society |date=June–July 2024 |volume=71 |doi=10.1090/noti2956 |url=https://www.ams.org/notices/202406/rnoti-p786.pdf |access-date=2 August 2024 |last1=Buckmire |first1=Ron |last2=Beeton |first2=Barbara |last3=Bryant |first3=Robert |last4=Gouvêa |first4=Fernando Q. |last5=Phillips |first5=Anthony |last6=Sullivan |first6=Dennis |last7=Wolf |first7=Michael |issue=6 |page=1 }}</ref>
⚫
Spivak lectured on elementary physics.<ref>[http://www.math.hc.keio.ac.jp/coe/videos/spivak2004/ Videos] {{webarchive|url=https://archive.today/20120903133348/http://www.math.hc.keio.ac.jp/coe/videos/spivak2004/ |date=2012-09-03 }} of Spivak's 2004 Pathway Lectures at Keio University and the [http://alpha.math.uga.edu/~shifrin/Spivak_physics.pdf text] for ''Elementary mechanics from a mathematician's viewpoint''.</ref> Spivak's book, ''Physics for Mathematicians: Mechanics I'' (published December 6, 2010), contains the material that these lectures stemmed from and more.<ref>{{cite book|title=Physics for Mathematicians, Mechanics I|isbn = 978-0914098324|last1 = Spivak|first1 = Michael|year = 2010}}</ref> Spivak was also the designer of the [[MathTime]] Professional 2 fonts (which are widely used in academic publishing)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://pctex.com/mtpro2.html|title=MathTime Professional 2 Fonts|work=[[pctex.com]]|access-date=October 15, 2013}}</ref> and the creator of ''[[Science International]]''.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bXxI8lC4cEwC&pg=PA36|title=Snippets of science from a goon|magazine=[[New Scientist]]|publisher=[[Reed Business Information]]|date=April 7, 1983|volume=98|number=1352}}</ref>


== Writing ==
== Writing ==
⚫
His five-volume ''A Comprehensive Introduction to [[Differential geometry|Differential Geometry]]''<ref>{{Cite book |last=Spivak |first=Michael |url=https://www.worldcat.org/title/ocm42962004 |title=A comprehensive introduction to differential geometry |date=1999 |publisher=Publish or Perish, Inc |isbn=978-0-914098-70-6 |edition=3rd |location=Houston, TX |oclc=ocm42962004}}</ref> is among his most influential and celebrated works. The distinctive pedagogical aim of the work, as stated in its preface, was to elucidate for graduate students the often obscure relationship between classical differential geometry—geometrically intuitive but imprecise—and its modern counterpart, replete with precise but unintuitive algebraic definitions. On several occasions, most prominently in ''Volume 2'', Spivak "translates" the classical language that [[Carl Friedrich Gauss|Gauss]] or [[Bernhard Riemann|Riemann]] would be familiar with to the abstract language that a modern differential geometer might use. The [[Leroy P. Steele Prize]] was awarded to Spivak in 1985 for his authorship of the work.


Spivak also authored several well-known undergraduate textbooks. Among them, his textbook ''Calculus''<ref>{{Cite book |last=Spivak |first=Michael |title=Calculus |date=1994 |publisher=Publish or Perish |isbn=978-0-914098-89-8 |edition=3rd |location=Houston, TX}}</ref> takes a rigorous and theoretical approach to introductory [[calculus]] and includes proofs of many theorems taken on faith in most other introductory textbooks. Spivak acknowledged in the preface of the second edition that the work is arguably an introduction to [[mathematical analysis]] rather than a calculus textbook.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Bressoud |first=David |date=2013 |editor-last=Spivak |editor-first=Michael |editor2-last=Nitecki |editor2-first=Zbigniew |editor3-last=Sharhriari |editor3-first=Shahriar |editor4-last=Cates |editor4-first=Dennis M. |editor5-last=Thomson |editor5-first=Brian S. |title=Review |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.4169/amer.math.monthly.120.06.577 |journal=The American Mathematical Monthly |volume=120 |issue=6 |pages=577–580 |doi=10.4169/amer.math.monthly.120.06.577 |issn=0002-9890 |jstor=10.4169/amer.math.monthly.120.06.577 |access-date=June 14, 2022 |archive-date=June 14, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220614042640/https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.4169/amer.math.monthly.120.06.577 |url-status=live }}</ref> Another of his well-known textbooks is ''[[Calculus on Manifolds (book)|Calculus on Manifolds]],''<ref>{{Cite book |last=Spivak |first=Michael |title=Calculus on manifolds: A modern approach to classical theorems of advanced calculus |date=2018 |publisher=CRC Press, Taylor & Francis Group |isbn=978-0-8053-9021-6 |series=Mathematics monograph series |location=Boca Raton London New York}}</ref> a concise (146 pages) but rigorous and modern treatment of [[multivariable calculus]] accessible to advanced undergraduates.
⚫
Among Spivak's pedagogical works, his five-volume magnum opus ''A Comprehensive Introduction to Differential Geometry'' (Publish or Perish Inc., 1970; 2nd ed., 1979; 3rd ed., 1999, revised 2005) is among his most influential and celebrated. The distinctive pedagogical aim of the work, as stated in its preface, was to elucidate for graduate students the often obscure relationship between classical differential geometry—geometrically intuitive but imprecise—and its modern counterpart, replete with precise but unintuitive algebraic definitions. On several occasions, most prominently in ''Volume 2'', Spivak "translates" the classical language that Gauss or Riemann would be familiar with to the abstract language that a modern differential geometer might use. The [[Leroy P. Steele Prize]] was awarded to Spivak in 1985 for his authorship of the work.


⚫
Spivak also wrote ''The Joy of [[TeX]]: A Gourmet Guide to Typesetting with the [[AMS-TeX]] Macro Package'' and ''The Hitchhiker's Guide to Calculus''. The book ''[[Morse theory|Morse Theory]]'' by Spivak's PhD advisor [[John Milnor]] was based on lecture notes by Spivak and Robert Wells (as mentioned on the cover page of the booklet).
Spivak also authored several well-known undergraduate textbooks. Among them, his textbook ''Calculus'' (W. A. Benjamin Inc., 1967; Publish or Perish, 4th ed., 2008) takes a rigorous and theoretical approach to introductory [[calculus]] and includes proofs of many theorems taken on faith in most other introductory textbooks.<ref>When Spivak was writing his Calculus book, the current "popular" book was by Thomas. Spivak joked about naming his book, "Thomas's Calculus" [by Michael Spivak,] so that students who asked to buy Thomas's Calculus would end up with Spivak's book.</ref> Spivak acknowledged in the preface that others might consider this textbook to be an introduction to mathematical analysis rather than a calculus book. Another of his well-known textbooks is ''[[Calculus on Manifolds (book)|Calculus on Manifolds]]'' (W. A. Benjamin Inc., 1965; Addison-Wesley, revised edition, 1968), a concise (146 pp.) but rigorous and modern treatment of multivariable calculus accessible to advanced undergraduates.<ref>When Spivak receives the galley proofs of ''Calculus on Manifolds'', the manuscript was proofread out loud (for $2/hour) by one of his roommates, J. Kowit, who has an autographed copy that reads "For Joel, who read every word, left parenthesis, and subscript. - Mike." One of the references in the index reads, "Lac locus." This relates to a period of time during which Spivak worked with a friend in the Biology Department of Brandeis, dealing with the [[lac operon]], a set of genes whose study won the Nobel Prize for Jacob and Monod. These genes are named i, o, z, and y, and these letters can be found in the equations on page 106 - a very inside joke.</ref>

⚫
Spivak also wrote ''The Joy of TeX: A Gourmet Guide to Typesetting With the [[AMS-TeX]] Macro Package'' and ''The Hitchhiker's Guide to Calculus''. The book ''[[Morse theory|Morse Theory]]'', by [[John Milnor]], was based on lecture notes by Spivak and Robert Wells (as mentioned on the cover page of the booklet).<ref>It is rumored that in each of Spivak's books there are hidden references to [[Yellow Pig's Day|yellow pigs]], an idea Spivak apparently came up with at a bar while drinking with [[David Kelly (mathematician)|David C. Kelly]].</ref>


=== Spivak pronouns ===
=== Spivak pronouns ===
{{Main|Spivak pronouns}}
Spivak used a set of English [[gender-neutral pronouns]] in his book <i>The Joy of TeX</i>, which are often referred to as [[Spivak pronouns]].<ref>{{cite web|last=McCurdy|first=Christen|title=Are Gender-Neutral Pronouns Actually Doomed?|url=https://psmag.com/social-justice/gender-neutral-pronouns-actually-doomed-67600|publisher=Pacific Standard|access-date=February 26, 2014}}</ref> (Spivak stated that he did not originate these pronouns.<ref name="tugboat"/>)
Spivak used a set of English [[gender-neutral pronouns]], ''e/em/eir'', in his book ''The Joy of TeX'', which are often referred to as Spivak pronouns.<ref>{{Cite news |last=McCurdy |first=Christen |title=Are Gender-Neutral Pronouns Actually Doomed? |url=https://psmag.com/social-justice/gender-neutral-pronouns-actually-doomed-67600 |access-date=February 26, 2014 |newspaper=Pacific Standard |archive-date=May 20, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210520155506/https://psmag.com/social-justice/gender-neutral-pronouns-actually-doomed-67600 |url-status=live }}</ref> Spivak stated that he did not originate these pronouns.<ref name=tugboat />


== Bibliography ==
== Bibliography ==
* {{Cite journal|last=Spivak|first=Michael|year=1967|title=Spaces satisfying Poincaré duality|journal=[[Topology (journal)|Topology]]|volume=6|issue=1|pages=77–101|doi=10.1016/0040-9383(67)90016-X|mr=0214071|doi-access=free}}
* {{Cite journal |last=Spivak |first=Michael |year=1967 |title=Spaces satisfying Poincaré duality |journal=Topology |volume=6 |issue=1 |pages=77–101 |doi=10.1016/0040-9383(67)90016-X |mr=0214071 |doi-access=free}}
* ''[[Calculus on Manifolds (book)|Calculus on Manifolds: A Modern Approach to Classical Theorems of Advanced Calculus]]'', (1965, revised 1968)
* ''[[Calculus on Manifolds (book)|Calculus on Manifolds: A Modern Approach to Classical Theorems of Advanced Calculus]]'', (1965, revised 1968)
* ''Calculus'', (1967, 4th ed. 2008)
* ''Calculus'', (1967, 4th ed. 2008)
* ''A Comprehensive Introduction to Differential Geometry'',<ref>{{cite journal|last=Guillemin|first= Victor|author-link=Victor Guillemin|title=Review: ''A comprehensive introduction to differential geometry'', Vols. 1 & 2, by M. Spivak|journal=Bull. Amer. Math. Soc.|year=1973|volume=79|issue=2|pages=303–306|url=https://www.ams.org/journals/bull/1973-79-02/S0002-9904-1973-13149-0/|doi=10.1090/s0002-9904-1973-13149-0|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|author=Alexander, Stephanie|title=Review: ''A comprehensive introduction to differential geometry'', Vols. 3, 4, & 5, by M. Spivak|journal=Bull. Amer. Math. Soc.|year=1978|volume=84|issue=1|pages=27–32|url=https://www.ams.org/journals/bull/1978-84-01/S0002-9904-1978-14399-7/|doi=10.1090/s0002-9904-1978-14399-7|doi-access=free}}</ref> (1970, revised 3rd ed. 2005)
* ''A Comprehensive Introduction to Differential Geometry'',<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Guillemin |first=Victor |author-link=Victor Guillemin |year=1973 |title=Review: ''A comprehensive introduction to differential geometry'', Vols. 1 & 2, by M. Spivak |url=https://www.ams.org/journals/bull/1973-79-02/S0002-9904-1973-13149-0/ |journal=Bull. Amer. Math. Soc. |volume=79 |issue=2 |pages=303–306 |doi=10.1090/s0002-9904-1973-13149-0 |doi-access=free |access-date=April 28, 2021 |archive-date=June 20, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210620140908/https://www.ams.org/journals/bull/1973-79-02/S0002-9904-1973-13149-0/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Alexander |first=Stephanie |year=1978 |title=Review: ''A comprehensive introduction to differential geometry'', Vols. 3, 4, & 5, by M. Spivak |url=https://www.ams.org/journals/bull/1978-84-01/S0002-9904-1978-14399-7/ |journal=Bull. Amer. Math. Soc. |volume=84 |issue=1 |pages=27–32 |doi=10.1090/s0002-9904-1978-14399-7 |doi-access=free |access-date=April 28, 2021 |archive-date=April 17, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210417083208/https://www.ams.org/journals/bull/1978-84-01/S0002-9904-1978-14399-7/ |url-status=live }}</ref> (1970, revised 3rd ed. 2005)
* ''The Joy of TeX: A Gourmet Guide to Typesetting with the AMS-TeX Macro package'', (1990)
* ''The Joy of TeX: A Gourmet Guide to Typesetting with the AMS-TeX Macro package'', (1990)
* ''A Hitchhiker's Guide to the Calculus'',<ref>{{cite web|title=Review: ''A Hitchhiker's Guide to the Calculus'' by Michael Spivak|date=2 February 1996|website=MAA Reviews|author=Fernando Q. Gouvêa|author-link= Fernando Q. Gouvêa |url=http://www.maa.org/publications/maa-reviews/a-hitchhikers-guide-to-the-calculus}}</ref> (1995)
* ''A Hitchhiker's Guide to the Calculus'',<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gouvêa |first=Fernando Q. |author-link=Fernando Q. Gouvêa |date=2 February 1996 |title=Review: ''A Hitchhiker's Guide to the Calculus'' by Michael Spivak |url=http://www.maa.org/publications/maa-reviews/a-hitchhikers-guide-to-the-calculus |website=MAA Reviews |access-date=January 21, 2015 |archive-date=January 18, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150118010505/http://www.maa.org/publications/maa-reviews/a-hitchhikers-guide-to-the-calculus |url-status=live }}</ref> (1995)
* {{cite book|first=Michael|last=Spivak|title=Physics for mathematicians—mechanics I|publisher= Publish or Perish|location= Houston, TX|year= 2010| isbn=978-0-914098-32-4|mr=2761185}}
*{{Cite book |last=Spivak |first=Michael |title=Physics for mathematicians—Mechanics I |publisher=Publish or Perish |year=2010 |isbn=978-0-914098-32-4 |location=Houston, TX |mr=2761185}}


== See also ==
== See also ==

* [[Stable normal bundle]]
* [[Stable normal bundle]]
* [[Spivak pronoun]]
* [[Spivak pronoun]]


== References ==
== References ==

{{Reflist}}
{{Reflist}}


== External links ==
== External links ==
* [http://www.mathpop.com Publish or Perish, Inc.], company owned by Spivak
* [http://www.mathpop.com/ Publish or Perish, Inc.], company owned by Spivak
* [http://www.vinc17.org/yp17/index.en.html 17 (Seventeen) and Yellow Pigs]
* [http://www.vinc17.org/yp17/index.en.html 17 (Seventeen) and Yellow Pigs]
* [https://everything2.com/title/Michael+Spivak Michael Spivak @ Everything2.com]
* [https://everything2.com/title/Michael+Spivak Michael Spivak at Everything2.com]
* {{MathGenealogy |id=15162}}
* {{MathGenealogy |id=15162}}
* [https://tug.org/TUGboat/tb42-3/tb132beeton-spivak.pdf Michael D. Spivak, 1940–2020], obituary in TUGboat by Barbara Beeton
* {{cite journal|title=Michael Spivak: A Memorial|journal=Notices of the American Mathematical Society|date=June 2024|volume=71|issue=6|pages=786–795|url=https://www.ams.org/notices/202406/rnoti-p786.pdf|doi=10.1090/noti2956|doi-access=free |last1=Buckmire |first1=Ron |last2=Beeton |first2=Barbara |last3=Bryant |first3=Robert |last4=Gouvêa |first4=Fernando Q. |last5=Phillips |first5=Anthony |last6=Sullivan |first6=Dennis |last7=Wolf |first7=Michael }}


{{Authority control}}
{{Authority control}}
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[[Category:Differential geometers]]
[[Category:Differential geometers]]
[[Category:Mathematical analysts]]
[[Category:American mathematical analysts]]
[[Category:Princeton University alumni]]
[[Category:Princeton University alumni]]
[[Category:People from Queens, New York]]
[[Category:People from Queens, New York]]
[[Category:Mathematicians from New York (state)]]
[[Category:Mathematicians from New York (state)]]
[[Category:Topologists]]
[[Category:American topologists]]
[[Category:Harvard University alumni]]
[[Category:Harvard University alumni]]
[[Category:LGBTQ mathematicians]]

Revision as of 20:43, 7 December 2024

Michael Spivak
Spivak in 1974
Born(1940-05-25)May 25, 1940
Queens, New York City, U.S.
DiedOctober 1, 2020(2020-10-01) (aged 80)
Houston, Texas, U.S.
Alma mater
Known for
AwardsLeroy P. Steele Prize for Expository Writing (1985)
Scientific career
Fields
ThesisOn Spaces Satisfying Poincaré Duality (1964)
Doctoral advisorJohn Milnor

Michael David Spivak[1] (May 25, 1940 – October 1, 2020)[2][3] was an American mathematician specializing in differential geometry, an expositor of mathematics, and the founder of Publish-or-Perish Press. Spivak was the author of the five-volume A Comprehensive Introduction to Differential Geometry, which won the Leroy P. Steele Prize for expository writing in 1985.

Biography

Spivak was born in Queens, New York. He received his Bachelor of Arts (A.B.) from Harvard University in 1960,[2] and in 1964 he received his Ph.D. from Princeton University under the supervision of John Milnor, with his thesis, On Spaces Satisfying Poincaré Duality.[1] Afterwards, Spivak taught as a full-time Math Lecturer at Brandeis University, whilst writing Calculus on Manifolds: A Modern Approach to Classical Theorems of Advanced Calculus, which was later translated into Polish, Spanish, Japanese and Russian. In 1967, he won a year-long National Science Foundation fellowship to Princeton’s Institute for Advanced Study, after which Spivak returned to Brandeis as Assistant Professor of Mathematics until 1970. In his last year as Assistant Professor, he published the first two volumes of "what would become a five-volume masterpiece with the daunting title, Comprehensive Introduction to Differential Geometry."[4] In 1985, Spivak received the Leroy P. Steele Prize for this five-volume set.[5]

In 2004, Spivak lectured on elementary physics.[6] Spivak's book, Physics for Mathematicians: Mechanics I (published December 6, 2010), contains the material that these lectures stemmed from and more.[7] Spivak was also the designer of the MathTime Professional 2 fonts (which are widely used in academic publishing)[8] and the creator of the TV series Science International.[9]

Spivak died on October 1, 2020.[10]

Writing

His five-volume A Comprehensive Introduction to Differential Geometry[11] is among his most influential and celebrated works. The distinctive pedagogical aim of the work, as stated in its preface, was to elucidate for graduate students the often obscure relationship between classical differential geometry—geometrically intuitive but imprecise—and its modern counterpart, replete with precise but unintuitive algebraic definitions. On several occasions, most prominently in Volume 2, Spivak "translates" the classical language that Gauss or Riemann would be familiar with to the abstract language that a modern differential geometer might use. The Leroy P. Steele Prize was awarded to Spivak in 1985 for his authorship of the work.

Spivak also authored several well-known undergraduate textbooks. Among them, his textbook Calculus[12] takes a rigorous and theoretical approach to introductory calculus and includes proofs of many theorems taken on faith in most other introductory textbooks. Spivak acknowledged in the preface of the second edition that the work is arguably an introduction to mathematical analysis rather than a calculus textbook.[13] Another of his well-known textbooks is Calculus on Manifolds,[14] a concise (146 pages) but rigorous and modern treatment of multivariable calculus accessible to advanced undergraduates.

Spivak also wrote The Joy of TeX: A Gourmet Guide to Typesetting with the AMS-TeX Macro Package and The Hitchhiker's Guide to Calculus. The book Morse Theory by Spivak's PhD advisor John Milnor was based on lecture notes by Spivak and Robert Wells (as mentioned on the cover page of the booklet).

Spivak pronouns

Main article: Spivak pronouns

Spivak used a set of English gender-neutral pronouns, e/em/eir, in his book The Joy of TeX, which are often referred to as Spivak pronouns.[15] Spivak stated that he did not originate these pronouns.[3]

Bibliography

  • Spivak, Michael (1967). "Spaces satisfying Poincaré duality". Topology. 6 (1): 77–101. doi:10.1016/0040-9383(67)90016-X. MR 0214071.
  • Calculus on Manifolds: A Modern Approach to Classical Theorems of Advanced Calculus, (1965, revised 1968)
  • Calculus, (1967, 4th ed. 2008)
  • A Comprehensive Introduction to Differential Geometry,[16][17] (1970, revised 3rd ed. 2005)
  • The Joy of TeX: A Gourmet Guide to Typesetting with the AMS-TeX Macro package, (1990)
  • A Hitchhiker's Guide to the Calculus,[18] (1995)
  • Spivak, Michael (2010). Physics for mathematicians—Mechanics I. Houston, TX: Publish or Perish. ISBN 978-0-914098-32-4. MR 2761185.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Michael Spivak at the Mathematics Genealogy Project
  2. ^ a b "1985 Steele Prizes Awarded at Summer Meeting in Laramie" (PDF). Notices of the American Mathematical Society. 32 (243): 576. October 1985. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 30, 2021. Retrieved November 30, 2021.
  3. ^ a b Beeton, Barbara (2021). "Michael D. Spivak, 1940–2020" (PDF). TUGboat. 42 (3): 226–227. doi:10.47397/tb/42-3/tb132beeton-spivak. S2CID 244121636. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 30, 2021. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
  4. ^ One Brilliant Classmate Remembers Another
  5. ^ Leroy P. Steele Prize
  6. ^
  7. ^ Spivak, Michael (2010). Physics for Mathematicians, Mechanics I. Publish or Perish. ISBN 978-0-914098-32-4.
  8. ^ "MathTime Professional 2 Fonts". pctex.com. Archived from the original on October 29, 2013. Retrieved October 15, 2013.
  9. ^ "Snippets of science from a goon". New Scientist. Vol. 98, no. 1352. Reed Business Information. April 7, 1983.
  10. ^ Buckmire, Ron; Beeton, Barbara; Bryant, Robert; Gouvêa, Fernando Q.; Phillips, Anthony; Sullivan, Dennis; Wolf, Michael (June–July 2024). "Michael Spivak: A Memorial" (PDF). Notices of the American Mathematical Society. 71 (6): 1. doi:10.1090/noti2956. Retrieved August 2, 2024.
  11. ^ Spivak, Michael (1999). A comprehensive introduction to differential geometry (3rd ed.). Houston, TX: Publish or Perish, Inc. ISBN 978-0-914098-70-6. OCLC 42962004.
  12. ^ Spivak, Michael (1994). Calculus (3rd ed.). Houston, TX: Publish or Perish. ISBN 978-0-914098-89-8.
  13. ^ Bressoud, David (2013). Spivak, Michael; Nitecki, Zbigniew; Sharhriari, Shahriar; Cates, Dennis M.; Thomson, Brian S. (eds.). "Review". The American Mathematical Monthly. 120 (6): 577–580. doi:10.4169/amer.math.monthly.120.06.577. ISSN 0002-9890. JSTOR 10.4169/amer.math.monthly.120.06.577. Archived from the original on June 14, 2022. Retrieved June 14, 2022.
  14. ^ Spivak, Michael (2018). Calculus on manifolds: A modern approach to classical theorems of advanced calculus. Mathematics monograph series. Boca Raton London New York: CRC Press, Taylor & Francis Group. ISBN 978-0-8053-9021-6.
  15. ^ McCurdy, Christen. "Are Gender-Neutral Pronouns Actually Doomed?". Pacific Standard. Archived from the original on May 20, 2021. Retrieved February 26, 2014.
  16. ^ Guillemin, Victor (1973). "Review: A comprehensive introduction to differential geometry, Vols. 1 & 2, by M. Spivak". Bull. Amer. Math. Soc. 79 (2): 303–306. doi:10.1090/s0002-9904-1973-13149-0. Archived from the original on June 20, 2021. Retrieved April 28, 2021.
  17. ^ Alexander, Stephanie (1978). "Review: A comprehensive introduction to differential geometry, Vols. 3, 4, & 5, by M. Spivak". Bull. Amer. Math. Soc. 84 (1): 27–32. doi:10.1090/s0002-9904-1978-14399-7. Archived from the original on April 17, 2021. Retrieved April 28, 2021.
  18. ^ Gouvêa, Fernando Q. (February 2, 1996). "Review: A Hitchhiker's Guide to the Calculus by Michael Spivak". MAA Reviews. Archived from the original on January 18, 2015. Retrieved January 21, 2015.
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