GMAT寫作素材積累:John Nash
2021-12-03點擊量:241
JohnNash(1928-)WhentheyoungNashhadappliedtograduateschoolatPrincetonin1948,hisoldCarnegieTechprofessor,R.J.Duffin,wroteonlyonelineonhisletterofrecommendation:"Thismanisagenius".ItwasatPrincetonthatNashencounteredthetheoryofgames,thenrecentlylaunchedbyJohnvonNeumannandOskarMorgenstern.However,theyhadonlymanagedtosolvenon-cooperativegamesinthecaseof"purerivalries"(i.e.zero-sum).TheyoungNashturnedtorivalrieswithmutualgain.Histrickwastheuseofbest-responsefunctionsandarecenttheoremthathadjustemerged-Kakutani'sfixedpoint-theorem.Hismainresult,the"NashEquilibrium",waspublishedin1950intheProceedingsoftheNationalAcademyofSciences.Hefollowedthisupwithapaperwhichintroducedyetanothersolutionconcept-thistimefortwo-personcooperativegames-the"NashBargainingSolution"(NBS)in1950.A1951paperattachedhisnametoyetanothersideofeconomics-thistime,the"NashProgramme",reflectinghismethodologicalcallforthereductionofallcooperativegamesintoanon-cooperativeframework.Hiscontributionstomathematicswerenolessremarkable.Asanundergraduate,hehadinadvertently(andindependently)provedBrouwer'sfixedpointtheorem.Lateron,hewentontobreakoneofRiemann'smostperplexingmathematicalconundrums.Fromthenon,Nashprovidedbreakthroughafterbreakthroughinmathematics.In1958,onthethresholdofhiscareer,Nashgotstruckbyparanoidschizophrenia.HelosthisjobatMITin1959(hehadbeentenuredtherein1958-attheageof29)andwasvirtuallyincapicatedbythediseaseforthenexttwodecadesorso.HeroamedaboutEuropeandAmerica,finally,returningtoPrincetonwherehebecameasad,ghostlycharacteronthecampus-"thePhantomofFineHall"asRebeccaGoldsteindescribedhiminhernovel,Mind-BodyProblem.Thediseasebegantoevaporateintheearly1970sandNashbegantograduallytoreturntohisworkinmathematics.However,Nashhimselfassociatedhismadnesswithhislivingonan"ultralogical"plane,"breathingairtoorare"formostmortals,andifbeing"cured"meanthecouldnolongerdoanyoriginalworkatthatlevel,then,Nashargued,aremissionmightnotbeworthwhileintheend.AsJohnDrydenonceputit:Greatwitsaresuretomadnessnearallied,Andthinpartitionsdotheirboundsdivide.新東方教育頻道或添加老師微信:...