Herman Chernoff

Herman Chernoff
Chernoff speaking in New York on October 6, 2015
Born	(1923-07-01) July 1, 1923 (age 102) New York City, U.S.
Alma mater	City College of New York Brown University
Known for	Chernoff bound Chernoff's distribution Chernoff face
Awards	Fellow, American Academy of Arts and Sciences (1974) Member, National Academy of Sciences (1980) Wilks Memorial Award (1987) Fellow, American Mathematical Society (2012)
Scientific career
Fields	Mathematics Statistics Physics
Institutions	University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign Stanford MIT Harvard
Thesis	Studentization in testing of hypotheses  (1948)
Doctoral advisor	Abraham Wald
Notable students	Stuart Geman Joseph B. Kadane

Herman Chernoff (born July 1, 1923) is an American applied mathematician, statistician and physicist. He was formerly a professor at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Stanford, and MIT, currently emeritus at Harvard University. ^{[1] [2]}

Early life and education

Herman Chernoff's parents were Pauline and Max Chernoff, Jewish immigrants from the Russian Empire. He studied at Townsend Harris High School ^[2] and earned a B.S. in mathematics from the City College of New York in 1943. ^[3] He attended graduate school at Brown University, earning an M.Sc. in applied mathematics in 1945, and a Ph.D. in applied mathematics in 1948 under the supervision of Abraham Wald. ^{[3] [4]}

Recognition

Chernoff became a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1974, ^[5] and was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 1980. ^[6] In 1987, he was selected for the Wilks Memorial Award by the American Statistical Association, ^[7] and in 2012, he was made an inaugural fellow of the American Mathematical Society. ^[8]

Personal life

Herman Chernoff's met his future wife, Judith, when they were both graduate students at Brown University in 1945, and married her in 1947. ^[9] She died at the age of 98 on June 9, 2023. ^[10] At the time of her death they were believed to be the oldest couple living in Massachusetts. ^[11]

Chernoff turned 100 on July 1, 2023. ^[12]

See also

• Chernoff bound (also known as Chernoff's inequality)
• Chernoff face
• Chernoff's distribution

References

1. Bather, John (1996). "A conversation with Herman Chernoff". Statistical Science . 11 (4): 335–350. doi: 10.1214/ss/1032280306 .
2. "Herman Chernoff". MacTutor History of Mathematics Archive . Retrieved 12 March 2020.
3. "Herman Chernoff". Faculty directory. MIT. Archived from the original on 7 October 2022. Retrieved 12 March 2020.
4. "Herman Chernoff". Mathematics Genealogy Project . Retrieved 12 March 2020.
5. "Herman Chernoff". Member Directory. American Academy of Arts and Sciences. September 2024.
6. "Herman Chernoff". Member directory. National Academy of Sciences.
7. "Samuel S Wilks Award of the American Statistical Association". MacTutor History of Mathematics archive.
8. List of Fellows of the American Mathematical Society, retrieved 2012-11-10
9. Siliezar, Juan. "A sense of humor, giving space, trying to listen: Advice from 73 years of marriage". The Harvard Gazette. Retrieved 25 September 2024.
10. "Judith Chernoff OBITUARY". Dignity Memorial. Retrieved 25 September 2024.
11. Stephanos, Maria (Mar 16, 2021). "Meet husband, wife believed to be oldest living couple in Massachusetts". WCVB-TV. Retrieved 25 September 2024.
12. Fortnow, Lance. "Chernoff Turns 100" . Retrieved 2023-07-02.

External links

• Chernoff's faculty profile at Harvard.
• Chernoff's faculty profile Archived 2022-10-07 at the Wayback Machine at MIT.
• Chernoff's biography on the MacTutor History of Mathematics archive.
• Chernoff's author profile on MathSciNet.
• Chernoff's profile on Mathematics Genealogy.
• Herman Chernoff publications indexed by Google Scholar