The Jerusalem Post

The Israeli who solved a 200-year-old math equation

Institute offers $1 million for solving ‘millennium’ problems

- • By HADAS LABRISCH

Are viscous fluids always smooth in three dimensions? The Navier-Stokes existence and smoothness problem is one of the so called “Millenium Problems,” the seven most complex mathematic­al problems yet to be proven according to the Clay Mathematic­s Institute.

But Dr. Gal Davidi, an Israeli mathematic­ian with a PhD in aerospace engineerin­g, and his partner Svetlin Georgiev believe they have found the solution, according to an official press release.

“Davidi and his partner Georgiev solved the problem and offered a way to prove the solution of the three-dimensiona­l Navier-Stokes equations problem,” Pedro Morais, a mathematic­ian from Portugal, said.

With 20 years of experience in aerospace engineerin­g, Davidi, 47, founded six start-up companies in the field and is currently CEO of one of them. He received his doctorate from the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology and his post doctorate from the Rensselaer Polytechni­c Institute in New York.

His partner Georgiev from Bulgaria is a well-known mathematic­ian who has written several books on calculus and fractional dynamics in time scales.

Davidi has been working on the Navier-Stokes problem since 2008. Named after Claude-Louis Navier and George Gabriel Stokes, it describes the motion of viscous substances.

Such equations have many applicatio­ns for engineerin­g and are widely used in calculatin­g everything from aerodynami­cs of airplane wings to sea flow. However, since their discovery 200 years ago, no one has been able to prove that they are always correct in three dimensions. Until now.

With the possibilit­y of winning $1,000,000 from the institute for solving one of its millennium problems,” Davidi and Georgiev invite mathematic­ians around the globe to read their proof and attempt to refute or affirm it. If approved, they will have made mathematic­al history.

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 ?? (Courtesy) ?? DR. GAL DAVIDI is shown next to the ‘Millenium Problem’.
(Courtesy) DR. GAL DAVIDI is shown next to the ‘Millenium Problem’.

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