Russian Animates Mathematics

February 25, 2011 

Nikolai Nikolaevich Andreev has created award-winning, computer-based animations that explicate mathematical ideas, formulas, theorems, and graphs.

Called "Mathematical Studies," his examples include an interactive proof of the Pythagorean theorem; why a trolley with non-round wheels can roll; and how to drill a square hole.

Andreev, who heads the Stetlov Mathematical Institute's Laboratory of Popularization and Promotion of Mathematics, in Moscow, specializes in function approximations, trigonometric polynomials, orthogonal polynomial systems, cubic formulas, and discrete geometry.

"The reactions of students in multimedia seminars are always enthusiastic. Frequently, after the lectures, the students ask me to show something else," Andreev told RIA News. "If, because of our movies, at least a few people enjoy the mathematical science, it's a step in the right direction. We want to convey that this science can help achieve things in life."

At a ceremony in the Kremlin on "Russian Science Day" (February 8, 2011) Andreev was awarded a Presidential prize for outstanding results in the creation of innovative educational technologies and for the promotion and dissemination of scientific knowledge.

Source: RIAN (February 14, 2011)