Nikolay Nikolayevich Konstantinov (russian: Николай Николаевич Константинов; 2 January 1932 – 3 July 2021) was a leading

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

and Russian mathematical educator and organizer of numerous

mathematics competitions Mathematics competitions or mathematical olympiads are competitive events where participants complete a math test. These tests may require multiple choice or numeric answers, or a detailed written solution or proof. International mathematics comp ...

for high school students. He is best known as the creator of the system of math schools and math classes and as the creator and chief organizer of the Tournament of the Towns. For his work he was awarded the

Paul Erdős Paul Erdős ( hu, Erdős Pál ; 26 March 1913 – 20 September 1996) was a Hungarian mathematician. He was one of the most prolific mathematicians and producers of mathematical conjectures of the 20th century. pursued and proposed problems in ...

award in 1992.

Biography

Konstantinov was born and grew up in

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

. He graduated from the Physics Department of the

Moscow State University M. V. Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU; russian: Московский государственный университет имени М. В. Ломоносова) is a public research university in Moscow, Russia and the most prestigious ...

in 1954, and later received a Ph.D. in

physics Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge which ...

. In the 1950s, he started a

math circle A math circle is a learning space where participants engage in the depths and intricacies of mathematical thinking, propagate the culture of doing mathematics, and create knowledge. To reach these goals, participants partake in problem-solving, mat ...

in Moscow University and since the 1960s in a number of Moscow high schools. He continued working with schools developing special classes with mathematics concentration and individual approach to learning. His students went on to win mathematics competitions on all levels and dozens of them became well-known mathematicians. In 1978, Konstantinov started the

Lomonosov Mikhail Vasilyevich Lomonosov (; russian: Михаил (Михайло) Васильевич Ломоносов, p=mʲɪxɐˈil vɐˈsʲilʲjɪvʲɪtɕ , a=Ru-Mikhail Vasilyevich Lomonosov.ogg; – ) was a Russian polymath, scientist and wri ...

tournament, a multi-subject science competition. This tournament is continued every year since then. In 1980, he started the international Tournament of the Towns which is now organized in over 150 towns in 25 countries. Until his late 80s, Konstantinov continued working in Moscow High School 179 and was an editor of Kvant magazine, a popular Russian science publication. In 1990, Konstantinov was one of the founders of

Independent University of Moscow The Independent University of Moscow (IUM) (russian: Независимый Московский Университет (НМУ)) is an educational organisation with rather informal status located in Moscow, Russia. It was founded in 1991 by a gr ...

, one of the leading institutions of higher learning in mathematics in Russia. Konstantinov died from the effects of

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quick ...

on 3 July 2021, during the

COVID-19 pandemic in Russia The COVID-19 pandemic in Russia is part of the ongoing pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 () caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (). The virus was confirmed to have spread to Russia on 31 January 2020, when two Chi ...

. He was 89 years old.

Books

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Scholarly publications

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Konstantinov, Nikolay N. 20th-century Russian mathematicians 1932 births 2021 deaths Moscow State University alumni Academic staff of the Independent University of Moscow Mathematicians from Moscow Soviet mathematicians Mathematics educators Soviet educators Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in Russia