today.nukz.net: Almanac December 28

John von Neumann (December 28, 1903 – February 8, 1957) was a Hungarian-American mathematician and polymath who made major contributions to a vast number of fields, including mathematics (set theory, functional analysis, ergodic theory, geometry, numerical analysis, and many other mathematical fields), physics (quantum mechanics, hydrodynamics, and fluid dynamics), economics (game theory), computer science (linear programming, computer architecture, self-replicating machines, stochastic computing), and statistics. He is generally regarded as one of the greatest mathematicians in modern history.

The mathematician Jean Dieudonné called von Neumann "the last of the great mathematicians", while Peter Lax described him as possessing the most "fearsome technical prowess" and "scintillating intellect" of the century, and Hans Bethe stated "I have sometimes wondered whether a brain like von Neumann's does not indicate a species superior to that of man". He was born in Budapest around the same time as Theodore von Kármán (b. 1881), George de Hevesy (b. 1885), Leó Szilárd (b. 1898), Eugene Wigner (b. 1902), Edward Teller (b. 1908), and Paul Erdos (b. 1913).

Von Neumann was a pioneer of the application of operator theory to quantum mechanics, in the development of functional analysis, a principal member of the Manhattan Project and the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton (as one of the few originally appointed), and a key figure in the development of game theory and the concepts of cellular automata, the universal constructor, and the digital computer. Von Neumann's mathematical analysis of the structure of self-replication preceded the discovery of the structure of DNA. In a short list of facts about his life he submitted to the National Academy of Sciences, he stated "The part of my work I consider most essential is that on quantum mechanics, which developed in Göttingen in 1926, and subsequently in Berlin in 1927–1929. Also, my work on various forms of operator theory, Berlin 1930 and Princeton 1935–1939; on the ergodic theorem, Princeton, 1931–1932." Along with Teller and Stanislaw Ulam, von Neumann worked out key steps in the nuclear physics involved in thermonuclear reactions and the hydrogen bomb.

Von Neumann wrote 150 published papers in his life; 60 in pure mathematics, 20 in physics, and 60 in applied mathematics. His last work, an unfinished manuscript written while in the hospital and later published in book form as The Computer and the Brain, gives an indication of the direction of his interests at the time of his death.

Events

457 – Majorian is crowned emperor of the Western Roman Empire and recognized by Pope Leo I.
484 – Alaric II succeeds his father Euric and becomes king of the Visigoths. He establishes his capital at Aire-sur-l'Adour (Southern Gaul).
893 – An earthquake destroys the city of Dvin, Armenia.
1065 – Westminster Abbey is consecrated.
1308 – The reign of Emperor Hanazono, emperor of Japan, begins.
1612 – Galileo Galilei becomes the first astronomer to observe the planet Neptune, although he mistakenly catalogued it as a fixed star.
1768 – King Taksin's coronation achieved through conquest as a king of Thailand and established Thonburi as a capital.
1795 – Construction of Yonge Street, formerly recognized as the longest street in the world, begins in York, Upper Canada (present-day Toronto, Ontario, Canada).
1832 – John C. Calhoun becomes the first Vice President of the United States to resign.
1835 – Osceola leads his Seminole warriors in Florida into the Second Seminole War against the United States Army.
1836 – South Australia and Adelaide are founded.
1836 – Spain recognizes the independence of Mexico.
1846 – Iowa is admitted as the 29th U.S. state.
1867 – United States claims Midway Atoll, the first territory annexed outside Continental limits.
1879 – Tay Bridge disaster: The central part of the Tay Rail Bridge in Dundee, Scotland, United Kingdom collapses as a train passes over it, killing 75.
1885 – Indian National Congress a political party of India is founded in Bombay, British India.
1895 – The Lumière brothers perform for their first paying audience at the Grand Cafe in Boulevard des Capucines, marking the debut of the cinema.
1895 – Wilhelm Röntgen publishes a paper detailing his discovery of a new type of radiation, which later will be known as x-rays.
1902 – The Syracuse Athletic Club defeated the New York Philadelphians, 5-0, in the first indoor professional football game, which was held at Madison Square Garden.
1908 – A magnitude 7.2 earthquake rocks Messina, Sicily, Italy killing over 75,000.
1912 – The first municipally owned streetcars take to the streets in San Francisco, California.
1918 – Constance Markievicz while detained in Holloway prison, became the first woman to be elected MP to the British House of Commons.
1935 – Pravda publishes a letter by Pavel Postyshev, who revives New Year tree tradition in the Soviet Union.
1943 – World War II – After eight days of brutal house-to-house fighting, the Battle of Ortona concludes with the victory of the 1st Canadian Infantry Division over the German 1st Parachute Division and the capture of the Italian town of Ortona.
1944 – Maurice Richard becomes the first player to score 8 points in one game of NHL ice hockey.
1948 – The DC-3 airliner NC16002 disappears 50 miles south of Miami, Florida.
1956 – Chin Peng, David Marshall and Tunku Abdul Rahman meet in Baling, Malaya to try and resolve the Malayan Emergency situation.
1958 – "Greatest Game Ever Played" – Baltimore Colts defeat the New York Giants in the first ever National Football League sudden death overtime game at New York's Yankee Stadium.
1972 – Kim Il-sung, already Prime Minister of North Korea and First Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea, became the first President of North Korea.
1973 – The Endangered Species Act is passed in the United States.
1974 – Senegalese marxist group Reenu-Rew founds the political movement And-Jëf at a clandestine congress.
1978 – With the crew investigating a problem with the landing gear, United Airlines Flight 173 runs out of fuel and crashes in Portland, Oregon, killing 10. As a result, United Airlines instituted the industry's first crew resource management program.
1980 – Second Rendlesham Forest incident.
1989 – A magnitude 5.6 earthquake hits Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia, killing 13 people.
2000 – U.S. retail giant Montgomery Ward announces it is going out of business after 128 years.
2008 – War in Somalia: The militaries of Somalia's Transitional Federal Government and Ethiopian troops capture Mogadishu unopposed.
2009 – 43 people die in a suicide bombing in Karachi, Pakistan, where Shia Muslims are observing the Day of Ashura.
2010 – Arab Spring: Popular protests begin in Algeria against the government.
2011 – Uludere airstrike: Turkish warplanes bombed 34 Kurds of Turkish nationality in the district of Uludere.

Births

1164 – Emperor Rokujo of Japan (d. 1176)
1522 – Margaret of Austria, regent of the Netherlands (d. 1583)
1619 – Antoine Furetière, French writer (d. 1688)
1635 – Princess Elizabeth of England (d. 1650)
1651 – Johann Krieger, German composer and organist (d. 1735)
1655 – Charles Cornwallis, 3rd Baron Cornwallis, First Lord of the British Admiralty (d. 1698)
1665 – George FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Northumberland, British general (d. 1716)
1763 – John Molson, English-born Canadian brewer (d. 1836)
1775 – Jean-Gabriel Eynard, Swiss banker (d. 1863)
1798 – Thomas James Henderson, Scottish astronomer(d. 1844)
1818 – Carl Remigius Fresenius, German chemist(d. 1897)
1842 – Calixa Lavallée, French-Canadian composer (O Canada) (d. 1891)
1856 – Woodrow Wilson, American politician, 28th President of the United States, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1924)
1866 – Szymon Askenazy, Polish historian and diplomat (d. 1935)
1870 – Charles Bennett, British athlete (d. 1949)
1879 – Billy Mitchell, American military aviation pioneer (d. 1936)
1882 – Arthur Eddington, British astronomer (d. 1944)
1887 – Werner Kolhörster, German physics (d. 1946)
1888 – a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F._W._Murnau" title="F. W. Murnau">Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau, German film director (d. 1931)
1890 – Quincy Wright, American political scientist (d. 1970)
1895 – Carol Ryrie Brink, American author (d. 1981)
1898 – Carl-Gustaf Rossby, Swedish meteorologist (d. 1957)
1898 – Shigematsu Sakaibara, Japanese admiral (d. 1947)
1899 – Eugeniusz Bodo, Polish actor (d. 1943)
1902 – Mortimer Adler, American philosopher (d. 2001)
1902 – Shen Congwen, Chinese writer (d. 1988)
1903 – Earl Hines, American musician (d. 1983)
1903 – John von Neumann, Hungarian-born mathematician (d. 1957)
1905 – Cliff Arquette, American actor (d. 1974)
1908 – Lew Ayres, American actor (d. 1996)
1910 – Billy Williams, American singer (d. 1972)
1913 – Lou Jacobi, Canadian actor (d. 2009)
1914 – Bernard Youens, English actor (d. 1984)
1914 – Bidia Dandaron, Buddhist author and teacher in the USSR (d. 1974)
1915 – Pops Staples, American musician (The Staple Singers) (d. 2000)
1920 – Steve Van Buren, American football player (d. 2012)
1921 – Johnny Otis, American musician (d. 2012)
1922 – Stan Lee, American comic book writer
1924 – Milton Obote, President of Uganda (d. 2005)
1925 – Hildegard Knef, German actress (d. 2002)
1928 – Moe Koffman, Canadian musician (d. 2001)
1929 – Brian Redhead, British journalist (d. 1994)
1929 – Terry Sawchuk, Canadian hockey player (d. 1970)
1931 – Guy Debord, French writer (d. 1994)
1932 – Dhirubhai Ambani, Indian businessman (d. 2002)
1932 – Dorsey Burnette, American singer (d. 1979)
1932 – Roy Hattersley, British politician
1932 – Harry Howell, Canadian hockey player
1932 – Nichelle Nichols, American actress and singer
1932 – Manuel Puig, Argentine writer (d. 1990)
1933 – John Y. Brown, Jr., American politician and 55th Governor of Kentucky
1934 – Rudi Faßnacht, German football manager (d. 2000)
1934 – Yujiro Ishihara, Japanese actor (d. 1987)
1934 – Dame Maggie Smith, British actress
1936 – Jacques Mesrine, French criminal (d. 1979)
1936 – Lawrence Schiller, American journalist
1937 – Jorge Nuno Pinto da Costa, Portuguese Football manager
1937 – Ratan Tata, Indian industrialist
1938 – Lagumot Harris, Nauruan politician and former President (d. 1999)
1938 – Dick Sudhalter, American jazz musician (d. 2008)
1939 – Philip Anschutz, American businessman
1939 – Michelle Urry, American editor of Playboy
1940 – Don Francisco, Chilean television host
1940 – A. K. Antony, Defence minister of Government of India
1942 – Roger Swerts, Belgian cyclist
1943 – Keith Floyd, British chef (d. 2009)
1943 – David Peterson, Canadian politician
1943 – Juan Luis Cipriani Thorne, Peruvian cardinal
1943 – Richard Whiteley, British television presenter (d. 2005)
1944 – Johnny Isakson, American politician
1944 – Kary Mullis, American chemist, Nobel laureate
1945 – Birendra of Nepal (d. 2001)
1946 – Edgar Winter, American musician
1946 – Mike Beebe, American politician and 45th Governor of Arkansas
1946 – Pierre Falardeau, Quebec film director
1946 – Tim Johnson, American politician, senior senator from South Dakota
1947 – Aurelio Rodríguez, Mexican baseball player (d. 2000)
1948 – Mary Weiss, American Singer (The Shangri-Las)
1950 – Øivind Blunck, Norwegian comedian and actor
1950 – Alex Chilton, American musician (The Box Tops, Big Star) (d. 2010)
1950 – Rainer Maria Latzke, German mural artist
1950 – Hugh McDonald, American musician (Bon Jovi)
1951 – Ian Buruma, Anglo-Dutch scholar and writer on Japan and the Far East
1952 – Arun Jaitley, Indian Politician
1953 – Richard Clayderman, French pianist
1953 – Tatsumi Fujinami, Japanese professional wrestler
1953 – Charlie Pierce, American writer
1954 – Gayle King, American magazine editor
1954 – Lanny Poffo, American professional wrestler
1954 – Denzel Washington, American actor
1955 – Liu Xiaobo, Chinese human rights activist, Nobel laureate
1956 – Nigel Kennedy, British violinist
1957 – Anne Sargeant, Australian netballer
1958 – Twila Paris, American singer
1959 – Ana Torroja, Spanish singer (Mecano)
1960 – Ray Bourque, Canadian ice hockey player
1960 – James Caan, British-Pakistani entrepreneur
1960 – Melvin Turpin, American basketball player (d. 2010)
1961 – Kent Nielsen, Danish footballer and football coach
1962 – Melissa R. Kelly, former Maryland politician
1962 – Michel Petrucciani, French pianist (d. 1999)
1962 – Choi Soo-jong, South Korean actor
1962 – Niel van der Watt, South African composer
1962 – Rachel Z, American pianist
1964 – Maite Zúñiga, Spanish athlete
1965 – Allar Levandi, Estonian Nordic combined skier
1967 – Chris Ware, American cartoonist
1968 – Akihiko Hoshide, Japanese engineer and astronaut
1969 – Linus Torvalds, Finnish computer programmer
1970 – Elaine Hendrix, American actress
1970 – Francesca Le, American porn star
1971 – Benny Agbayani, American baseball player
1971 – William Gates, American basketball player
1971 – Frank Sepe, American bodybuilder
1972 – Roberto Palacios, Peruvian footballer
1972 – Patrick Rafter, Australian tennis player
1972 – Adam Vinatieri, American football player
1973 – Holger Blume, German athlete
1973 – Marc Blume, German athlete
1973 – Alex Dimitriades, Australian actor
1973 – Herborg Kråkevik, Norwegian singer and actress
1973 – Seth Meyers, American actor
1974 – Rob Niedermayer, Canadian-born ice-hockey player
1974 – Jason Ridge, American porn actor
1974 – Markus Weinzierl, German footballer
1975 – B. J. Ryan, American baseball player
1976 – Igor Žikovic, Croatian footballer
1976 – Joe Manganiello, American actor
1977 – Shane Elford, Australian rugby league player
1978 – Jang Min-Hyeok, South Korean voice actor
1978 – Chris Coyne, Australian footballer
1978 – John Legend, American musician
1979 – James Blake, American tennis player
1979 – Bill Hall, American baseball player
1979 – Senna Guemmour, German Singer (Monrose)
1979 – Noomi Rapace, Swedish actress
1979 – Bree Williamson, Canadian actress
1980 – Vanessa Ferlito, American actress
1980 – Lomana LuaLua, Congo footballer
1981 – Khalid Boulahrouz, Dutch footballer
1981 – Elizabeth Jordan Carr, first American test-tube baby
1981 – Sienna Miller, British actress
1981 – Orlando Smeekes, Curaçaoan footballer
1981 – Frank Turner, English Singer-Songwriter
1981 – Mika Väyrynen, Finnish footballer
1981 – Narsha, Korean pop singer
1982 – Cedric Benson, American football player
1982 – François Gourmet, Belgian decathlete
1982 – Desiree Ortíz, Venezuelan model and television host
1982 – Kevin Pereira, American television host
1982 – Ferry Rotinsulu, Indonesian footballer
1983 – Mike Ha, Taiwanese actor
1984 – Leroy Lita, English footballer
1984 – Alex Lloyd, British racing driver
1985 – Kamani Hill, American footballer
1985 – Taryn Terrell, American wrestler/model
1986 – Tom Huddlestone, English footballer
1986 – Victoria Atkin, English actress
1987 – Thomas Dekker, American actor
1987 – Matthias Schwarz, German footballer
1988 – Katerina Kramperová, Czech tennis player
1988 – Martina Pretelli, Sammarinese sprinter
1989 – Mackenzie Rosman, American actress
1990 – David Archuleta, American singer and actor
1990 – Zlatko Hebib, Swiss footballer
2001 – Madison De La Garza, American child actress
2002 – Kelsey Smith-Briggs, American murder victim (d. 2005)

Deaths

300 – Theonas, Patriarch of Alexandria
1367 – Ashikaga Yoshiakira, Japanese shogun (b. 1330)
1446 – Antipope Clement VIII
1503 – Piero di Lorenzo de' Medici, ruler of Florence (b. 1471)
1558 – Hermann Finck, German composer (b. 1527)
1622 – Francis de Sales, Bishop of Geneva and saint (b. 1567)
1663 – Francesco Maria Grimaldi, Italian mathematician and physicist (b. 1618)
1671 – Johann Friedrich Gronovius, German classical scholar (b. 1611)
1694 – Queen Mary II of England (b. 1662), of the joint monarchy William and Mary
1703 – Mustafa II, Ottoman Sultan (b. 1664)
1706 – Pierre Bayle, French philosopher (b. 1647)
1708 – Joseph Pitton de Tournefort, French botanist (b. 1656)
1715 – William Carstares, Scottish minister (b. 1649)
1734 – Rob Roy MacGregor, Scottish folk hero (b. 1671)
1736 – Antonio Caldara, Italian composer (b. 1670)
1795 – Eugenio Espejo, Ecuadorian scientist (b. 1747)
1859 – Thomas Babington Macaulay, 1st Baron Macaulay, British poet (b. 1800)
1872 – James Van Ness, Mayor of San Francisco (1855–1856) (b. 1808)
1897 – Rev. William Corby, American Catholic priest (b. 1833)
1900 – Alexandre de Serpa Pinto, Portuguese explorer (b. 1846)
1916 – Eduard Strauss, Austrian composer (b. 1835)
1917 – Alfred Edwin McKay, Canadian World War One flying ace (b. 1892)
1918 – Olavo Bilac, Brazilian poet (b. 1865)
1919 – Johannes Rydberg, Swedish physicist (b. 1854)
1924 – Léon Bakst, Russian artist (b. 1866)
1932 – Jack Blackham, Australian cricketer (b. 1854)
1935 – Clarence Day, American author(b. 1874)
1937 – Maurice Ravel, French composer (b. 1875)
1938 – Florence Lawrence, Canadian actress (b. 1886)
1941 – Hermann Wilker, German rower (b. 1874)
1942 – Alfred Flatow, German gymnast and Holocaust victim (b. 1869)
1943 – Steve Evans, American baseball player (b. 1885)
1945 – Theodore Dreiser, American author (b. 1871)
1947 – King Victor Emmanuel III of Italy (b. 1869)
1949 – Jack Lovelock, New Zealand athlete (b. 1910)
1952 – Fletcher Henderson, American musician (b. 1897)
1956 – Louis Handley, Italian-born American swimmer and water polo player (b. 1874)
1959 – Ante Pavelic, leader of Nazi Germany puppet Independent State of Croatia (b. 1889)
1962 – Kathleen Clifford, American actress (b. 1887)
1963 – Paul Hindemith, German composer (b. 1895)
1967 – Katharine McCormick, American women's rights activist (b. 1875)
1971 – Max Steiner, Austrian-born American film music composer (b. 1888)
1976 – Katharine Byron, American politician (b. 1903)
1976 – Freddie King, American musician (b. 1934)
1981 – Allan Dwan, Canadian-born film director (b. 1885)
1983 – William Demarest, American actor (b. 1892)
1983 – Jimmy Demaret, American golfer (b. 1910)
1983 – Dennis Wilson, American musician (The Beach Boys) (b. 1944)
1984 – Sam Peckinpah, American film director (b. 1925)
1986 – John D. MacDonald, American novelist (b. 1916)
1986 – Jan Nieuwenhuys, Dutch painter (b. 1922)
1989 – Hermann Oberth, German physicist (b. 1894)
1991 – Cassandra Harris, Australian actress (b. 1952)
1992 – Sal Maglie, American baseball player (b. 1917)
1993 – William L. Shirer, American journalist (b. 1904)
1993 – Howard Caine, American film and television actor (b. 1926)
1994 – Jean-Louis Lévesque, French Canadian entrepreneur (b. 1911)
1999 – Clayton Moore, American actor (b. 1914)
2001 – Samuel A. Goldblith, American food scientist (b. 1919)
2001 – William X. Kienzle, American novelist (b. 1928)
2003 – Benjamin Hacker, American admiral (b. 1935)
2004 – Jerry Orbach, American actor (b. 1935)
2004 – Susan Sontag, American writer (b. 1933)
2006 – Jamal Karimi-Rad, Iranian Minister of Justice (b. 1956)
2007 – Aidin Nikkhah Bahrami, Iran national basketball team player (b. 1982)
2008 – Irene Lieblich, Polish-born painter (b. 1923)
2009 – James Owen "The Rev" Sullivan, American musician drummer and back-up vocalist of Avenged Sevenfold (b. 1981)
2010 – Billy Taylor, American musician (b. 1921)
2011 – Jon Roberts, American Gangster (b. 1948)