48. Irving Kaplansky (1917-2006)

President 1985-1986

Kaplansky was born in Toronto. He served on the faculty of the University of Chicago from 1945 to 1984, when he became the director of the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute in Berkeley, CA. Kaplansky was awarded the AMS Leroy P., Steele Prize for Lifetime Achievement in 1989 for his lasting impact on mathematics, particularly mathematics in America. By his energetic example, his enthusiastic exposition, and his overall generosity, he made striking changes in mathematics and inspired generations of younger mathematicians. Kaplansky was a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences.

• History of the Second Fifty Years: American Mathematical Society, 1939-1988, by Everett Pitcher (AMS, 1988), which includes AMS Presidents from 1939-1988 (and reports on all aspects of the Society during the period).
• The MacTutor History of Mathematics Archive
• Mathematics Genealogy Project
• "A Song About Pi," by Ivars Peterson, MathTrek, July 12, 1999.
• Photographs in "Who's That Mathematician? Images from the Paul R. Halmos Photograph Collection"