Moscow Mathematical Society

one of the oldest mathematical societies in Europe. Founded in 1864 as a mathematics study group by professors and instructors at Moscow University, including N. D. Brashman and A. Iu. Davidov, it existed as such until 1867. The well-known scientists P. L. Chebyshev, F. A. Bredikhin, and K. M. Peterson were instrumental in the founding of the society. N. E. Zhukovskii became one of the most active members in the early 1870’s. His papers as well as those by Bredikhin, A. G. Stoletov, and others determined the nature of the society’s interests in the 19th century, when papers in applied mathematics occupied no less a place than those in pure mathematics. Of particular importance were the papers in pure mathematics of Peterson, the founder of the Moscow school of differential geometry. At the end of the 19th century the society’s membership included B. K. Mlodzeevskii, D. F. Egorov, and F. A. Chaplygin.

After the October Revolution of 1917, the society expanded its activities and range of subjects. Its interests now included probability theory, topology, algebra, and different trends in mathematical analysis. The society systematically presented generalizing survey papers, as well as papers dealing with current scientific work. It also added a section for probability theory and sections for secondary schools and higher technical schools.

The Moscow Mathematical Society holds school mathematical competitions and annually awards prizes to young mathematicians. It collaborates with the Academy of Sciences of the USSR in the publication of the journals Matematicheskii sbornik and Uspekhi matematicheskikh nauk; it also publishes Trudy in the form of irregular collections.