Constantine Michael Dafermos

Alumni-Alumnae University Professor:
Applied Mathematics
Phone: +1 401 863 1483
Constantine_Dafermos@Brown.EDU

I work on the interface between continuum mechanics and the theory of partial differential equations. In recent years, my research has focused on nonlinear hyperbolic systems of conservation laws, whose solutions spontaneously develop singularities that propagate as shock waves. I am interested in the interplay between thermodynamics and analysis, in the theory of these systems, and have been striving to elucidate the fundamental role of entropy, as a stabilizing agent.

Biography

I received a Diploma in Civil Engineering from the National Technical University of Athens (1964) and a Ph.D. in Mechanics from the Johns Hopkins University (1967). I have served as Assistant Professor at Cornell University (1968-1971),and as Associate Professor (1971-1975) and Professor (1975-) in the Division of Applied Mathematics at Brown University. Since 1984, I have been the Alumni-Alumnae University Professor at Brown.

Interests

Over the past three years, I have been involved in the following research projects:

(1) Uniqueness and stability of solutions to hyperbolic systems of conservative laws, arising in elastodynamics and electromagnetism, which are endowed with involutions, a polyconvex entropy and a set of contingent entropies.

(2) Continuous solutions of hyperbolic balance laws with applications to the Hunter-Saxton equation.

(3) Irrotational sonic-subsonic gas flow via the method of compensated compactness.

Awards

Fellow American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 2001-¬.

Correspondent Member, Academy of Athens, 1988-¬.

Honorary Professor, Academia Sinica, China, 2004-¬.

Member, Board of Governors, Weizmann Institute of Science (Israel), 1995-.

Fellow, Society of Scholars, Johns Hopkins University.

Chairman, Society for Natural Philosophy, 1977-¬78.

Secretary, International Society for the Interaction of Mathematics and Mechanics, 1984¬-86.

Ordway Chair, University of Minnesota, 1985.

Keeley Fellowship, Wadham College, Oxford, 2001.

Honorary Doctorate, University of Athens, 1987.

Honorary Doctorate, National Technical University (Greece), 1991.

Honorary Doctorate, University of Crete, 2001.

SIAM W.T. and Idalia Reid Prize, 2000.

Affiliations

Editorial Board of following publications:
Quarterly of Applied Mathematics, Associate Managing Editor
Acta Mathematica Scientia, Chief Co-Editor
Annali di Matematica Pura ed Applicata
Archive for Rational Mechanics and Analysis
Mathematics Applied in Science and Technology
Communications in Applied Analysis
Advances of Mathematics in Applied Sciences
Proceedings of the Royal Society of Edinburgh
International Journal of Pure and Applied Mathematics
Ricerche di Matematica
International Journal of Differential Equations and Applications
Revista Matematica Complutense
Abstract and Applied Analysis
Bulletin of Greek Mathematical Society
Journal of Dynamics and Differential Equations
Journal of Hyperbolic Differential Equations

Member, Board of Governors and Scientific and Advisory Committee, Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel

Member, Advisory Board, Institute of Mathematics, Academy of Sciences, Czech Republic

Member, Scientific Advisory Panel, IRIMA, University of Wales, U.K.

Organizer, Program on Conservation Laws, Banff International Research Station, Canada

Organizer, Program on Conservation Laws, Oberwolfach, Germany

Member, Scientific Committee, XII International Conference on Nonlinear Hyperbolic PDE, College Park, Maryland

Member, Scientific Committee, EUROCONFERENCES, Crete

Member, Habilitation Evaluation Committee, Paris, France

Funded Research

NSF Grant # DMS-020288 (Hyperbolic Conservation Laws in Continuum Physics)

NSF Grant # DMS-0244295 (FRG Collaborative Research: Multi-Dimensional Problems for the Euler Equations)