Renowned Chinese Mathematician Qian Weichang Dies at 97

August 12, 2010

Qian Weichang, a pioneer of applied mathematics and mechanics in modern China, died July 30, 2010, in Shanghai at age 97.

Qian, born in eastern Jiangsu province in 1912, graduated from Tsinghua University in physics in 1935 and earned his Ph.D. in applied mathematics (under J. L. Synge) from the University of Toronto in 1942.

Qian returned to China in 1946 and became a mechanics professor and later vice-president at Tsinghua University. During the Cultural Revolution, Qian was "unfairly criticized" as a reactionary, according to Xinhua News Agency. He was subsequently removed from his posts within the Communist Party.  From 1968-1971 he was forced to work in a steel factory in Beijing. He was "rehabilitated" by the Party in 1979, Xinhua reported.

Qian was Editor-in-Chief of Applied Mathematics and Mechanics and a member of the editorial boards of The International Journal of Engineering Science, Advances in Applied Mechanics, and The Journal of Finite Elements in Analysis and Design, among others.

Qian, who became a member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, was one of three well-known "Qians" in science and technology. Qian Xuesen made his name as the father of China's space program and Qian Sanqiang, a nuclear physicist, oversaw development of China's nuclear weapons program.

Source: The News (July 30, 2010)