Paul Allen Catlin
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Paul Allen Catlin ( – ) was a mathematician, professor of mathematics who worked in
graph theory In mathematics and computer science, graph theory is the study of ''graph (discrete mathematics), graphs'', which are mathematical structures used to model pairwise relations between objects. A graph in this context is made up of ''Vertex (graph ...
and
number theory Number theory is a branch of pure mathematics devoted primarily to the study of the integers and arithmetic functions. Number theorists study prime numbers as well as the properties of mathematical objects constructed from integers (for example ...
. He wrote a significant paper on the series of chromatic numbers and Brooks' theorem, titled '' Hajós graph coloring conjecture: variations and counterexamples''.Publication list for Paul Catlin, math.wvu.edu


Career

Originally from
Bridgeport Bridgeport is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Connecticut and the fifth-most populous city in New England, with a population of 148,654 in 2020. Located in eastern Fairfield County at the mouth of the Pequonnock River on Long Is ...
,
Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...
, Catlin majored in Mathematics with a B.A. degree from
Carnegie Mellon University Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The institution was established in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie as the Carnegie Technical Schools. In 1912, it became the Carnegie Institu ...
in 1970. Catlin held a Doctorate in Mathematics degree from
Ohio State University The Ohio State University (Ohio State or OSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States. A member of the University System of Ohio, it was founded in 1870. It is one ...
. From 1972 to 1973, he was a research and teaching assistant at
Ohio State University The Ohio State University (Ohio State or OSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States. A member of the University System of Ohio, it was founded in 1870. It is one ...
, where he earned the Master of Science degree in Mathematics. In 1976, he went to work at
Wayne State University Wayne State University (WSU) is a public university, public research university in Detroit, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1868, Wayne State consists of 13 schools and colleges offering approximately 375 programs. It is Michigan's third-l ...
, where he concentrated the research on chromatic numbers and
Brooks' theorem In graph theory, Brooks' theorem states a relationship between the maximum degree (graph theory), degree of a graph and its chromatic number. According to the theorem, in a connected graph in which every vertex has at most Δ neighbors, the vertic ...
. As a result, Catlin published a significant paper in that series: ''Hajós graph coloring conjecture: variations and counterexamples.'', which showed that the conjecture raised by
Hugo Hadwiger Hugo Hadwiger (23 December 1908 in Karlsruhe, Germany – 29 October 1981 in Bern, Switzerland) was a Swiss people, Swiss mathematician, known for his work in geometry, combinatorics, and cryptography. Biography Although born in Karlsruhe, Ge ...
is further strengthened not only by k \le 4 but also by k \ge 7 , which led to the joint paper written with
Paul Erdős Paul Erdős ( ; 26March 191320September 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 discrete mathematics, g ...
and
Béla Bollobás Béla Bollobás FRS (born 3 August 1943) is a Hungarian-born British mathematician who has worked in various areas of mathematics, including functional analysis, combinatorics, graph theory, and percolation. He was strongly influenced by Paul E ...
titled ''Hadwiger's conjecture is true for almost every graph''. He authored over fifty academic papers in
number theory Number theory is a branch of pure mathematics devoted primarily to the study of the integers and arithmetic functions. Number theorists study prime numbers as well as the properties of mathematical objects constructed from integers (for example ...
and
graph theory In mathematics and computer science, graph theory is the study of ''graph (discrete mathematics), graphs'', which are mathematical structures used to model pairwise relations between objects. A graph in this context is made up of ''Vertex (graph ...
. Many of his contributions and collaborations have been published in ''
The Fibonacci Quarterly The ''Fibonacci Quarterly'' is a scientific journal on mathematical topics related to the Fibonacci numbers, published four times per year. It is the primary publication of The Fibonacci Association, which has published it since 1963. Its founding ...
'', in '' The Journal of Number Theory'', in the ''Journal of
Discrete Mathematics Discrete mathematics is the study of mathematical structures that can be considered "discrete" (in a way analogous to discrete variables, having a bijection with the set of natural numbers) rather than "continuous" (analogously to continuous f ...
'', and many other academic publications. He co-authored scholarly papers with Arthur M. Hobbs,
Béla Bollobás Béla Bollobás FRS (born 3 August 1943) is a Hungarian-born British mathematician who has worked in various areas of mathematics, including functional analysis, combinatorics, graph theory, and percolation. He was strongly influenced by Paul E ...
and
Paul Erdős Paul Erdős ( ; 26March 191320September 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 discrete mathematics, g ...
, Hong-Jian Lai, Zheng-Yiao Han, and Yehong Shao, among others. He also published papers with G. Neil Robertson, with whom he also completed his dissertation thesis in 1976.


Selected publications

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Catlin, Paul 1948 births 1995 deaths 20th-century American mathematicians American number theorists Graph theorists Ohio State University Graduate School alumni Wayne State University faculty