Chapter 50: Do You Still Want Göttingen To Rise?
“Compared to Hong Kong, New York is a good place to do number theory.
New York City University, Columbia University, New York University, and nearby Princeton University have plenty of experts in number theory.
Melvin Nathanson often holds number theory seminars, and Harvey Cohen mainly works on algebraic number theory and quadratic forms, and is also an active organizer of the number theory seminar.
The research by mathematicians in the entire New York in the number theory field has shifted from classical number theory to modern analytic number theory and algebraic number theory.
If you go, in such an environment, you can produce a lot of interesting work,” Lin Ran said.
New York has a reputation in the number theory field for the New York number theory community, which benefits from the New York Number Theory Seminar organized by Melvin Nathanson in 1982.
But it was founded in 82, and it had been active as early as the 50s.
Lin Ran was very curious, if Chen Jingrun were thrown into an environment like New York, following Harvey Cohen, what kind of work he could produce, and whether he could truly solve the Goldbach Conjecture.
“I know what you’re worried about. The cost of living in New York is indeed very high, but I’ll talk it over with Professor Harvey to arrange a scholarship for you. The scholarship will be enough to cover your expenses in New York.
Additionally, if the scholarship isn’t enough, I can also help you apply for a Fulbright Program scholarship,” Lin Ran added.
Half a year ago, Professor Horkheimer had taken care of him this way, and half a year later, he could also take care of another Chinese genius in a similar way. A sense of déjà vu emerged in Lin Ran’s heart.
Chen Jingrun’s eyes reddened slightly. From his more than a month of interaction with Lin Ran, he absolutely did not believe the other would be a bystander. This time, Lin Ran’s care for him merely verified his conjecture once again.
After a moment of silence, he said, “Thank you, Professor. I will seriously consider your suggestion.”
With Chen Jingrun’s identity, he naturally could not agree on his own.
Lin Ran stood up and patted the shoulder of this famous mathematician who had lived in textbooks in the past, then smiled and said, “Dehui, a real man shouldn’t act like a shy little girl. Following me would instead be a trouble for you.
Also, don’t think that helping you requires a great price from me. Professor Harvey has always been asking me to attend his number theory seminar, but I go infrequently because they hold them too frequently, on average once every two weeks.
If I attend a few more of his seminars later, he will surely agree happily.
Even after personally meeting you, he will feel that he owes me a favor, and might even treat you as a disciple to whom he passes on his mantle.”
Lin Ran had considered recommending Chen Jingrun to Shiing-Shen Chern, but firstly, he wasn’t close to Shiing-Shen Chern, and secondly, the other worked on differential geometry, while Chen Jingrun worked on number theory; the two fields didn’t overlap at all.
And the reason for choosing Harvey Cohen, besides the other being a big shot in the number theory field and able to provide occasions like the New York Number Theory Seminar for Chen Jingrun,
was also a very important reason: the other was at New York City University, which has always been known for serving diverse student groups, including workers and minority ethnic groups.
Even if something unexpected happened to him, Chen Jingrun would have a greater chance of being protected at New York City University.
It could be said that Lin Ran had considered almost every factor.
“Thank you, Professor, thank you.”
“Also, Dehui, I remember you mentioned before that your father is looking for work? If he hasn’t found one yet, I suggest he consider working in shipping, shipping from Hong Kong to New York, so that every time he arrives in New York, he can find opportunities to see you,” Lin Ran mentioned casually, as if it were just an offhand suggestion.
Chen Jingrun would not treat this as a mere suggestion; he was well aware that Lin Ran knew his identity, and also knew the identity of his so-called father.
Since the other mentioned it this way, there must be profound meaning behind it.
However, Chen Jingrun remained outwardly composed: “I will discuss it properly with him.”
Lin Ran nodded: “Companies like Shun Chang Shipping, Orient Overseas (International), and Global Shipping are good ones. Remember to mention them.”
Finally, Lin Ran handed him the envelope in his hand: “This is the recommendation letter. If you want to apply for a PhD with Professor Harvey, write to me in advance.”
When getting up to leave and walking to Chen Jingrun’s side, Lin Ran said in a low voice: “The evening I leave, remember to go to my office at Hong Kong University to pick up a document. It’s in the bottom drawer on the right side; it is ten thousand times more important than the mathematical knowledge I taught you.”
Chen Jingrun didn’t turn his head, silently memorized Lin Ran’s words, and then said in a similarly low voice: “Professor, Professor Hua Luogeng has been transferred to work in Yangcheng.”
Lin Ran’s departing steps halted, his fist clenched tightly, “Good!”
He knew what information Chen Jingrun wanted to convey to him.
In the Peninsula Hotel near Nathan Road in Tsim Sha Tsui, in the Japanese restaurant named Tokyo Pavilion, mathematics professors from Japan and mathematics professors from India gathered together.
Ihara Yasutaka was very dissatisfied with the curry smell filling the room.
Although this meal didn’t require them to pay—JETRO’s Hong Kong office was footing the bill—it was originally meant to entertain Professor Lin, but instead a group of Brother San showed up.
If there had been a Ramanujan, it would have been acceptable, but let alone Ramanujan, by Ihara Yasutaka’s standards, there wasn’t even a single second-rate mathematician here.
“Shimura, I really don’t understand why Professor Kodaira wants to invite these Indian scholars to dinner,” Ihara Yasutaka complained. “This has no meaning at all for the Japanese mathematics community.”
Ihara Yasutaka was only 22 at this time; after graduating with a bachelor’s, he continued to pursue a PhD in mathematics at East University, similar in age to Goro Shimura, and because he also worked in number theory, he was brought to Hong Kong.
Goro Shimura was about eight years older than him and had experienced the rollercoaster of his achievement going unnoticed and then being unearthed due to citation by a big shot, so he was much more mature:
“How can you be sure there isn’t someone like Randolph among these Indian scholars?”
Germany, University of Göttingen Mathematics Department office
“Professor, how could you let a mathematician like Randolph get away!” Max Döblin held the latest issue of New Progress in Mathematics that had crossed the ocean, his face full of incredulity.
“Don’t you want University of Göttingen to become a mathematics center again?”
This issue of New Progress in Mathematics detailed Lin Ran’s proof of the Fermat Diophantine Conjecture, proposing and proving the important tool of linear form in logarithms theory, further perfecting his own Randolph Program.
After the paper was published and spread globally through the journal, it was considered another achievement worthy of the Fields Medal.
In the original spacetime, Alan Baker did indeed win the 1970 Fields Medal for linear form in logarithms theory.
After reading Lin Ran’s latest paper, Carl Ludwig Seagull regretted it deeply in his heart.
Just because he agreed to Horkheimer and accepted Randolph Lin as a disciple, it had caused his lifelong reputation to be ruined.
