Robert Henry Risch

{{Short description|American mathematician}}

Robert Henry Risch (born 1939) is an American mathematician who worked on computer algebra and is known for his work on symbolic integration, specifically the Risch algorithm.{{cite journal |last1=Risch |first1=Robert H. |title=The Problem of Integration in Finite Terms |journal=Transactions of the American Mathematical Society |volume=139 |pages=67–189 |url=https://www.ams.org/journals/tran/1969-139-00/S0002-9947-1969-0237477-8/S0002-9947-1969-0237477-8.pdf|doi=10.1090/S0002-9947-1969-0237477-8 |accessdate=8 January 2020|year=1969 |doi-access=free }} This result was quoted as a milestone in the development of mathematics:

{{Quote|text=Calculus students worldwide depend on the algorithm, whenever they appeal to Wolfram Alpha to do their homework.{{cite book |last1=Garcia |first1=Stephan Ramon |last2=Miller |first2=Steven J. |title=100 years of math milestones : the Pi Mu Epsilon centennial collection |date=2019 |isbn=978-1-4704-3652-0 |page=302 |url=https://bookstore.ams.org/mbk-121 |accessdate=9 January 2020}}}}

He is also known for results on algebraic properties of elementary functions.{{cite journal |last1=Risch |first1=Robert H. |title=Algebraic Properties of the Elementary Functions of Analysis |journal=American Journal of Mathematics |volume=101 |issue=4 |pages=743–759 |jstor=2373917 |year=1979 |doi=10.2307/2373917 }} He received his PhD from the University of California, Berkeley in 1968{{cite web |title=Robert Henry Risch record at UC Berkeley|url=https://math.berkeley.edu/people/grad/robert-henry-risch |website=Robert Henry Risch |accessdate=8 January 2020}} under the supervision of Maxwell A. Rosenlicht.{{cite web |title=Robert Henry Risch at Mathematics Genealogy Project |url=https://www.genealogy.math.ndsu.nodak.edu/id.php?id=32467 |accessdate=9 January 2020}} After his PhD, he worked at the Thomas J. Watson Research Center Mathematics of AI group{{cite web |title=Mathematics of AI |url=https://researcher.watson.ibm.com/researcher/view_group.php?id=9860 |accessdate=9 January 2020}} and, between 1970 and 1972, the Institute for Advanced Study.{{cite web |title=Past Members: Robert Henry Risch |url=https://www.ias.edu/scholars/robert-henry-risch |website=Institute of Advanced Studies|date=9 December 2019 }}