Herman Chernoff
American mathematician (1923–2026)
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Herman Chernoff (July 1, 1923 – July 6, 2026) was an American applied mathematician, statistician and physicist. He was a professor at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Stanford, MIT, and at Harvard University.[1][2]
Herman Chernoff | |
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Chernoff speaking in 2015 | |
| Born | July 1, 1923 New York City, U.S. |
| Died | July 6, 2026 (aged 103) Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Education | |
| Known for | |
| Awards |
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| Scientific career | |
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| Workplaces | |
| Thesis | Studentization in testing of hypotheses (1948) |
| Abraham Wald | |
Notable students | |
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 and death
Chernoff 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] and died in Boston, Massachusetts, on July 6, 2026, at the age of 103.[13]
See also
- Chernoff bound (also known as Chernoff's inequality)
- Chernoff face
- Chernoff's distribution