For most of the twentieth century, if you studied higher mathematics in Russia, you worked from one problem book. This is its first English edition. Günter and Kuzmin's Collection of Problems in Higher Mathematics began in 1912 as a working set of problems compiled by the mathematics department of the Institute of Engineers of Ways of Communication in St Petersburg. It grew to three volumes, ran to a thirteenth edition, and became the standard problem book of the Soviet universities and the higher technical institutes alike. Russian biographical accounts record that its problems supplied the mathematics of the entrance examination Lev Landau set his prospective students — the celebrated "theoretical minimum." Here is the part most people don't know. The two men who assembled it were not textbook compilers. They were working research mathematicians, and it shows on every page. RODION KUZMIN (1891–1949) left two permanent results. In 1928 he settled a question Gauss had raised and left unanswered — the limiting distribution of the partial quotients of a continued fraction — and was the first to prove it with an estimate of the rate of convergence. The theorem and the distribution now carry Gauss's name and his. In 1930 he proved that a^b is transcendental whenever a is a positive algebraic number other than 1 and b is a real quadratic irrational. So 2^√2 is transcendental. That is a case of Hilbert's seventh problem, and he got there four years before Gelfond and Schneider settled it in general. He was expelled from Petersburg University for student politics, finished his degree at Petrograd in 1916, and held the chair of general mathematics at Leningrad University from 1945 until his death. NIKOLAI GÜNTER (1871–1941) was taught by Korkin, Markov and Possé — the direct line of Chebyshev's school. Doctorate in 1915 on the characteristics of systems of partial differential equations. Professor from 1916 until his death. Corresponding member of the USSR Academy of Sciences from 1924. His treatise on potential theory was published in Paris in 1934, in Borel's collection at Gauthier-Villars, and reviewed in the English mathematical press on publication. He led the higher mathematics department at the Institute of Engineers of Ways of Communication from 1906, and for long stretches taught at four institutions at once, across some four decades. Günter died in 1941. Kuzmin finished the last revision alone and signed its preface from Biysk, in 1944, a long way from Leningrad. WHAT IS IN THE BOOK 6,314 problems, numbered continuously from 1 to 6,314, running from analytic geometry in the plane through to the calculus of variations and the theory of probability. Higher algebra, integration, multiple and surface integrals, ordinary and partial differential equations, special functions, series, approximate computation, complex variables, mathematical physics. The theoretical interludes that make the problems usable sit exactly where a working student needs them — not in an appendix. a.co/d/07jMUsK1

🇸🇬 Singapore was colonized until 1965 Average IQ in Singapore: 108 🇸🇴 Somalia was colonized until 1960 Average IQ in Somalia: 68 Spot the difference…

#MITeconomics Peter Diamond and Eric Maskin co-taught the economics of uncertainty at MIT in the Fall of 1978. Their five page course reading list has been transcribed and posted. irwincollier.com/m-i-t-readi…

Tbilisi 🇬🇪 is the best city to move to right now: - 1% income tax - 30 min taxi ride costs under $4 - Berghain-level techno club in the city center - Cafes open until 11 PM, full of people BUILDING

Have you ever noticed that the Kumon logo looks like a kid who is miserable?

🚨 NEW: Heathrow’s third runway has been delayed and won’t be completed until 2039 [@Telegraph]

Huge respect to Monzo and co for leading the neobanking revolution but the reality is is that no one aside from Revolut has done anything significant since 2019. They all got complacent while Revolut just got more aggressive. Only the paranoid survive, and Revolut is the epitome of that definition. Monzo is being sold because they stagnated and that price alone is well beyond what I’d expect (and maybe I’m missing something as to why it’s that high). Monzo, N26, Starling, Qonto, Bunq, and the rest of the Europeans who started after 2015 have all more or less rode the wave of their brand to continue acquiring users while not taking any significant product risks or making structural changes internally to reach those 1000x returns on growth. Compare that to the American Neobanks who launched around 2020 and most have made significant progress product and valuation wise. Ramp alone went for 0-44B in 5 years. Ashamed to admit it but the same happened to my neobank Penta pre acquisition. With 60k SMBs acquired after 4 years, we got too comfortable. We continued riding the brand wave and it worked, but not much more innovation was produced pre acquisition because we got comfortable in our own success. Revolt is the only neobank that has continued to take significant risks and is willing to fail in public in order to hit that 1 swing that will be a 1000x return. Thats why they’re worth $100B+. If you’re a neobank founder, be like Revolut. And less like the Europeans.

UBS is considering a merger that would move the bank out of Switzerland (Semafor) Switzerland’s parliament voted to advance a law that adds more capital constraints Morgan Stanley, Deutsche, and Standard Chartered are rumored suitors

The irony of Deutsche and Barclays as the last remaining major European investment banks cannot be overstated