Perelman Final (English)

7/27/2019 Perelman Final (English)

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[1] On July 1, 2010 the media broadcasted that the Russian mathematician Grigori Perelman had finally

refused the million dollar prie! "he ne#s #as be#ildering! $e had earned the money fairly, gi%ing a

correct proof of the problem that had remained unsol%ed for a century! &o one in the history ofmathematics had e%er refused such a large cash prie!

[2] '(y no other #ay could Perelman ha%e attracted more attention to himself, mathematics and the

Poincare con)ecture!*

[+] "he media uic-ly spreads the image of a strange mathematician from .t! Petersburg! One loo- at this

man is enough to see that he is poor, so #hy does he not need money and fame/ here is the logic/ llattempts to find it out from Perelman himself ha%e been futile!

[] 3Perelman4s %oice5 'hat 6 #anted to say 6 ha%e already said! Goodbye!*

[7] '"he story is so unusual because Perelman is a %ery unusual person! 6t brings a romantic element to the

story! People #ill be retelling it for many years!*

[8] $a%ing sol%ed one of the mysteries of the millennium, Perelman becomes a mystery himself! $e has

-ept silent for many years! nd his silence is loud! 9aybe #ith all this e:citement o%er the prie #e ha%emissed the most important uestion at hand! ho is this man and #hat happened #ith him in mathematicsand in his life/

[;] "he #orld consists of consumers, it4s normal! <or millions the interest in mathematics ended #ithschool! &umbers #ere in%ented to count money! hat #ill #e get from great mathematical disco%eries/

[=] '>ou -no# #hat they used to say! &umber theory, #hat is it/ 6t turned out that e%erything #e use no# ?cell phones, computers and so on ? they all use number theory! 6t is all based on some disco%eries from the

1@th century and some more modern!*

[@] 'Ao you -no# that #hen you put a credit card into an "9 you use %ery serious mathematicaltheorems/ "he data is encrypted! nd these theorems #ere not disco%ered for this purpose!*

[10] (ut suddenly the serene camp of consumers is confused! "he situation #ith Perelman ignites a boomof interest in mathematics! People #ant to -no# #hat they #ill get from the sol%ed problem and #hy the

Poincare con)ecture #as assessed #ith so much money!

[11] $enri Poincare #as the President of the <rench cademy of .ciences! $e #as noble, correct in

disputes, and indifferent to fame! $e strictly honored ethical beha%ior in science! $e used to say that the

geometry of the ne# century needs intuition and inspiration!

[12] Poincare first #rote do#n his con)ecture in 1@0! <or one hundred years it #as a pule left to hiscolleagues as a legacy! 6n response to the recent interest due to Perelman, people ha%e tried e:plaining it in

many different #ays to the common man, but it is not easy to e:plain Poincare4s con)ecture in simple terms!.uch e:planations ha%e used cups, doughnuts, soup bubbles and oranges!

[1+] 'Auring this fuss there #as so much nonsense about it!*

[1] 'll those attempts to e:plain the Poincare con)ecture ? complete nonsense! &ot a #ord of truth!*



[17] '$ere is his hypothesis as 6 see it! "here is the space #e li%e in and he tries to e:tract its essential

properties! $e begins to describe these properties! (ut it is not easy to e:plain mathematics because it isli-e a foreign language! >ou can4t e:plain in t#o #ords #hat the Bhinese language is to someone #ho

doesn4t -no# it! >ou ha%e to study it for years!*

[18] .o #e can amuse oursel%es by transforming cups into doughnuts and by shrin-ing the Carth into a

point, but the Poincare con)ecture and the mysteries of space #on4t become clearer to us! 9athematiciansli%e in a different cosmos! "hey -no# that #hoe%er sol%es the Poincare con)ecture #ill come closer to the

most important problem of mathematics and physicsD #hat is the shape of the uni%erse/

[1;] '"here is no other #ay to describe the #orld! 6t is either a natural language or mathematics! ithout

Grisha it could ha%e remained unsol%ed for another century!*

[1=] $o#e%er, the situation is that not e%en all mathematicians can understand his thoughts!

[1@] 'Russia had an amaing mathematical school that created Perelman! 6f #e hadn4t had this school #e#ould not ha%e had Perelman! 6t #as generations of mathematicians that interacted #ith him and taught

him!*

[20] Grisha Perelman #as born in 1@88 into a country #ith a great mathematical school, the country of

Eobache%s-y, Fo%ale%s-y, Folmogoro%, and Bhebyshe%! $is parents considered it a matter of honor to

instill a lo%e of mathematics into their children Grisha and his younger sister, Eena!

[21] "he first time 6 heard about Grisha #as from professor &athanson! $e said that his former student

had a -id #ho #as interested in mathematics! nd #hy #ouldn4t 6 loo- at him!

[22] "he mother #as con%inced that mathematics #as perfect for her son! "he boy #as unusual in character

? he #as persistent and impeccably honest!

[2+] 'e are in the sub#ay and Grisha is s#eating profusely! $e is #earing a fur hat #ith tied flaps!

'Grisha, it is hot, untie the hat!* '&o,* said Grisha, '6 promised my mom 6 #ouldn4t, so 6 #on4t!* Grisha

certainly #as impeccably honest!*

[2] 9athematics ga%e him e%erything he #antedD solitude, comple:ity, hard?and?fast rules! &ot being

able to sol%e a problem #as de%astating for him! Only %ictories #ere allo#ed! 6t #as an a:iom for him!

[27] (ut this a:iom #ill shatter #hen life puts into one euation a great problem, ambitions and a million

dollars! nd this story #on4t be about mathematics!

[28] 6t began #hen he boarded the plane flying o%erseas! 6n .eptember 1@@2 Grigori Perelman comes to &e# >or- for his internship in the Bourant 6nstitute of 9athematical .ciences! "hen he #ill go to (er-eley!

$e had a great start to scienceD elite school, a diploma #ith distinction from the .t!Petersburg .tateHni%ersity, graduate school and a )ob in the state4s best mathematical organiation!

[2;] (ut in the early @0s the .o%iet Hnion collapses! Russia is facing a period of political change andeconomic turmoil! .cience #as the last thing on the peopleIs mind!



[2=] '6n the late =0s, #e probably had the best institute in the #orld! mongst the 110 members, ;0 had

Ph!A degrees in some field of mathematics! 6f you had a uestion you could al#ays find somebody #ho

could ans#er it! Of the ;0 doctorates, 0 of them left! Ban you imagine such loss/*

[2@] "he lac- of intellectual #or- is dangerous for a young mathematician! .o 9i-hail Gromo% tries to

help and in%ites Grisha to the H.! Perelman4s #or-s are #ell -no#n there! .uch is his talent!

[+0] '"hey admired his ability to sol%e problems that nobody else could! hile he #or-ed here, he sol%edthree or four problems that had remained unsol%ed for 20+0 years!*

[+1] Grigori is 28 years old! nd he doesn4t -no# that this escape from the problems #ill change his life

dramatically! (ut e%erything is fine no#! modest apartment, austerity e%ery#here, 9anhattan doesn4t

attract him!

[+2]! '6 couldn4t find out if he %isited the art museums! 6t is, supposedly, not e:pensi%e in merica! Or if

merica left any impression on him! $e #ent there to do science and #as doing it!*

[++] '$e loo-ed thoughtful, rational, and ne%er depended on other people4s opinion!*

[+] Perelman doesn4t get on #ell #ith people, but the young professor Gang "ian from Bhina is ane:ception! C%ery #ee- they rent a car and dri%e to Princeton or .tony (roo- to attend the lectures of the

best professors! t one of these lectures he meets the famous geometer Richard $amilton! lthough, their

encounter #as ordinary, )ust a brief con%ersation after the lecture about the Ricci flo# and the continuity ofspace!

[+7] '$amilton beha%ed sincerely, interested in the truth of mathematics! $e told Grisha e%erything he-ne# on this sub)ect!*

[+8] $e also told the most importantD he #as close to sol%ing the Poincare con)ecture! Perelman, of course,

-ne# about the con)ecture! (ut #as he interested in it/

[+;] "hree years ha%e passed! $is internship in merica is going #ell and se%eral prestigious uni%ersities

offer him a position! $e thin-s about staying, learns Cnglish and gets a dri%er4s license!

[+=] (ut on one day Perelman reads a ne# article by $amilton and realies that $amilton is unable to

proceed in sol%ing the problem! Grisha #rites to him sayingD '6 thin- 6 -no# ho# to go further*! &o replyfrom $amilton ? it is a signal that Grisha can #or- on the problem alone! $e buys a tic-et home!

[+@] '$e had a clear idea ? he needed se%en years of peace and uiet in order to #or-! 6n merica he could

not ha%e it, he must ha%e a )ob there! (esides he had some sa%ings that he could li%e on! .o he #ent bac- to

Russia!*

[0] $e returns to .t! Petersburg! "he father has left the family and no# li%es in 6srael! $is sister studies inthe same uni%ersity but soon #ill also mo%e to 6srael! $e is alone #ith his mother! "hey li%e in different

apartments in the same neighborhood!

[1] (ut no# this loneliness is his sal%ation! $is main ob)ecti%e is the problem he is facing! $e has ne%er

dealt #ith a more challenging one! $e is obsessed #ith the idea to o%ercome something that nobody else



can! $e -no#s that he is capable of this!

[2] 'Grisha is %ery strong in mathematics! .tronger than anybody else! $e is super strong!*

[+] 9athematics is not #ell suited for child prodigies! "he ability to sol%e problems increases #ith age!

Grisha #as 12 years old #hen he came here ? the mathematics club at Eeningrad4s >oung Pioneer Palace!

"he competition #ith the other boys here became his first ma)or challenge!

[] 'O%er the span of four years co%ering the 7 th, 8th, ;th and =th grades the number one student in the city

#as another boy ? Grisha4s future classmate li- Ee%in! hat Grisha did in one hour, li- did in 17minutes!*

[7] 6n order to stimulate a teenager4s ambition and to re%eal his hidden abilities, a catalyst is reuired! ndthat catalyst #as failure!

[8] 'Grisha4s stimulus #as failing t#o or three times during the =th grade! $e failed at the city4s Olympiad

? he only placed second! $e also failed at the llHnion Olympiad, #here he also placed second! "his pro%o-ed him, and half a year later he became the number one in the city and in the country!

[;] "hus, at the age of 17 he had forgotten ho# to lose! "here #ould be many %ictories in the future!cceptance to the best Eeningrad4s uni%ersity ? a %ictory! cuiring the reputation of a strong problem

sol%er ? a %ictory! chie%ing full mar-s at the 6nternational 9athematical Olympiad in (udapest ? a

%ictory! $is teachers didn4t -no# #hat #as impossible for him in mathematics!

[=] '"hese abilities are e:actly #hat he needed to #or- on the Poincare con)ecture for ;= years! 6t4s not

easy to concentrate on a hard problem for a long time!*

[@] t the end of July in the year 2000 the Blay 9athematics 6nstitute announces the 9illennium Prie

Problems! "here are se%en problems that ha%e remained unsol%ed for many years! "he merican

philanthropist Eandon Blay offers a million dollars for sol%ing each! "he idea #as to re#ard the bestmathematicians!

[70] '6 do not appro%e of this idea of the Blay 6nstitute! 6t reminds me of sho# business! Eife has sho#nthat something al#ays happens #ith this prie!*

[71] "he Poincare con)ecture is on the list, but Perelman doesn4t care! <or the last 7 years this problem ise%erything he thin-s about! $e rarely goes to #or-! $is only indulgences are #al-ing and classical music

concerts! nd the fact that it is no# a prie problem doesn4t change anything! $e feels that the solution is

feasible! "his is much more re#arding than any prie! "he most important thing is the solution!

[72] '6 can gi%e you an e:ample of ho# one gets mathematical ideas! .ometimes, #hen you4re discussingsomething, you #ill suddenly recall an anecdote! "he fact that you can recall it at the right moment has

nothing to do #ith memory! 6t is the same in mathematics!*

[7+] '6t is an incredible emotional stress! Poincare #rote about it! 6n his boo-, '.cience and 9ethod*, he

#rites about boarding a tram, and ho# insightful thoughts struc- him at that time!*

[7] &o%ember 11, 2002! Perelman opens the #ebsite arKi%!org! $is proof is finished ? "he Cntropy



<ormula for the Ricci <lo# and its Geometric pplications! 6t4s 0 pages in Cnglish! $e signs his name,

'Grisha Perelman*, and then submits it! nd the mathematical #orld blo#s up!

[77] '6 had not heard from him for many years! .ince 1@@7, #hen he #ent bac- to Russia! 6t #as a big

surprise to recei%e an email from him!*

[78] '6 already -ne# Perelman and immediately realied that this deser%ed our attention! 6 can say that 6

-ne# about it on the ne:t day!*

[7;] '6n fact it #as Richard $amilton #ho told me! e had a Bhristmas party in Aecember 2002! $e saidthat there is this guy, a topologist, #ho put out an article about the Ricci flo#, claiming at the end that he

pro%ed the Poincare con)ecture! nd it #as clear that the author #as serious!*

[7=] Auring the same year Perelman submits the other t#o parts of his #or-! $is colleagues are confused!

<irst of all, the proof #as e:tremely brief! .econdly, posting a #or- on the internet doesn4t ha%e any official

status! 6t is if the author #as saying '$ere is my solution! 64m not interested in anything else*!

[7@] '"he fact that he posted the article on the internet might ha%e meant that the author #ent cray! (ut

you could see that the reasoning in the article #as logical and sound!*

[80] '"his #asn4t a cran-! "here are many cran-s #ho claim that they ha%e sol%ed the Poincare con)ecture!

(ut in this case it #asn4t a cran-!*

[81] '<rom my e:perience #ith Grisha 6 can tell that he tends to underestimate himself! &ot only in

mathematics, but also in life! .omeone else in this situation #ould ha%e #idely announced this

achie%ement and published e%erything in detail! (ut Grisha #as different!*

[82] "he first reaction is to meet Grisha, and to as- him a lot of uestions!

[8+] '6 #rote and in%ited him to the .tates, to gi%e a number of lectures about his #or-! $e repliedimmediately! 6mmediately!*

[8] 6n 200+ Perelman flies again to the H.! "he best uni%ersities in%ite him to hold lectures! "he bestmathematicians are eager to attend them! (ut )ournalists are not allo#ed! Perelman can4t stand cameras and

recorders!

[87] '$e #as sharp #ith those #ho tried to record his lectures! 6 remember at one lecture in .tony (roo-

one of the students put a recorder on the table! hen Perelman sa# it, he as-edD 'hat4s that/* "he student

e:plained that he #anted to record the lecture! Perelman saidD '&o, no, noL*

[88] '9any people gathered here for the lecture! .upposedly, he #as claiming that he had pro%en thePoincare con)ecture! (ut he did not e%en mention it! (ecause he chose those topics #hich he found the

most important! nd the con)ecture #as )ust a small application of his theory!*

[8;] 6t happened )ust li-e that! "he audience #as silent! 6t #as not )ust the Poincare con)ecture, but

something more! $e #as opening ne# doors in geometry! nd the con)ecture #as )ust a small case #hichhe had pro%ed along the #ay! 6t #as as if he had sha-en Poincare4s hand and simply mo%ed on!



[8=] 'hen Perelman sol%ed this problem, he #as perhaps the only one #ho understood it! &o#, after a

fe# years, there are se%eral people #ho understand it!*

[8@] Perelman does not li-e be the center of attention! mong his colleagues, ho#e%er, he is comfortable!

C%en then, they only tal- about mathematics! C%erything else is not for him!

[;0] '6 remember ho# #e used to spend time togetherD he #ould come to my office, #e #ould tal- for

se%eral hours, and then #e #ould go for a #al-! $e en)oyed #al-ing!*

[;1] '6 in%ited him for lunch! "he ne:t day #as .unday, and he #as staying #ith his mother in (roo-lyn!$e as-ed, 'ho #ill be there/* 6 said, '9y #ife, my son and daughter, and myself!* "hen he responded by

sayingD '&o, no! 6 can4t come!* 6 thin- if $amilton and Gromo% had been there, he #ould ha%e saidD 'OF, 6

#ill thin- about it!*

[;2] $o#e%er, Perelman ne%er spo-e #ith $amilton before his departure! $amilton attended the lectures,

but did not approach Grisha! hat #as the reason for this/ Cn%y/ Resentment/ Aisbelief/ ho -no#s!

[;+] gain, Perelman is in%ited to stay in merica, but he returns to .t! Petersburg! <or Perelman, the

con)ecture is no longer a con)ecture, but for the other mathematicians the #or- has )ust begun! "hedisco%ery reuires a serious e:amination! 6t can ta-e years!

[;] '"his problem has a long history of incorrect proofs! "here #ere doens of such proofs! nd that4s

#hy e%eryone #as suspicious! 6t #as easy to ma-e a mista-e in the proof!*

[;7] 'C%ery day, #e get submissions from people #ho claim that they ha%e sol%ed one of the problems or

all of the problems plus the <ermat problem! "heir proofs al#ays contain mista-es! (ut Perelman #as-no#n as a great mathematician, and people #anted to understand #hat he did!*

[;8] '>ou can4t hope to understand in t#o days #hat someone too- se%en years to come up #ith! Right/*

[;;] "he #orld4s best mathematicians begin to chec- the proof! "he bul- of the #or- is carried out by t#o

teams! One team consists of (ruce Fleiner and John Eott! "he other one has John 9organ, #ho #or-ed on

the con)ecture for many years, and Gang "ian!

[;=] "hese mathematicians deciphered, %erified and commented on Perelman4s proof! 6t #as e:hausting

#or-! &ot e%ery mathematician had sufficient -no#ledge of the different fields of mathematics reuired tounderstand his proof!

[;@] 'Perelman did not in%ent the method of sol%ing the problem! illiam "hurston began #or-ing on this

in 1@;7! "hen Richard $amilton in%ented a tool #hich could potentially sol%e the problem!*

[=0] 6n his proof, Perelman dra#s on many different fields of mathematicsD the Ricci$amilton flo#,

"hurston4s geometriation con)ecture, the le-sandro% geometry! "he immense breadth of -no#ledge ?#hich he acuired in the .o%iet schooling system ? is #hat allo#s him this freedom!

[=1] '$e bypassed the point at #hich $amilton got stuc-! "his alone #as amaing enough!*

[=2] '$amilton said that if he #as a#are of the theorems that Perelman -ne#, he #ould ha%e done more!*



[=+] "his institute at <ontannaya .treet #as #here Grigori Perelman #or-ed for 17 years! 6t #as here that

he interacted #ith the best geometers in the countryD le-sandro%, Malgaller, (urag! $ere he sol%ed problemsN argued #ith his superiorsN s#itched laboratoriesN and reluctantly #rote hateful reports! Ei-e this

one!

[=] '$ere is his report! &o publications!*

[=7] 6n Aecember 2007, Perelman suddenly resigns!

[=8] 'Right here, he hands me his resignation paper! 6 say, 'Grisha, ha%e you thought about this/ Eet4s lea%e

this paper here, so that you can ta-e it bac- later!* '&o, 6 ha%e thought hard about this,* said Grisha! "hen 6

as-ed, 'Aoes your mother -no#/* '&o, my mother doesn4t -no#! hy does she need to -no#/ 9y sister-no#s!*

[=;] 's 6 understand it, he is lea%ing not )ust the institute, but also mathematics!*

[==] 6t is difficult to understand, but Perelman insists on itD for him, mathematics is o%er! $e uic-ly stops

tal-ing about mathematics! $is circle of friends rapidly shrin-s to nothing! (ut #hat is this/ 6s it simply a#him of a genius, or is it rather the desperation of a tired man/

[=@] '6f it is true, and Grisha ne%er lies, then he has left mathematics and #ill ne%er come bac-! (ut is his

brain still capable of doing mathematics/ 9aybe it has dried out, li-e a sponge in the .ahara Aesert!*

[@0] 'n achie%ement li-e that might not happen again! "here are e:amples of mathematicians #ho ha%e

not contributed anything after achie%ing great things! (ecause they burned out!*

[@1] 9ean#hile, 2008, the year of his 0th birthday, has come! nd life gi%es him both a huge present, and

a huge nightmare ? #orld#ide recognition! .cience 9againe chooses the proof of the Poincare con)ecture

as its (rea-through of the >ear! Perelman is ran-ed @th among the top 100 geniuses ali%e by the Aaily"elegraph!

[@2] (ut the sensation of the year is an article in the &e# >or-er! 6ts authors, t#o )ournalists by the name of.yl%ia &asar and Aa%id Gruber, e:pose a scandal in the mathematical community ? some mathematicians

#ant to strip Perelman of his prie! "he article re%eals names and facts! 6t causes la#suits!

[@+] .yl%ia &asar is a serious opponent! .he is the author of ' (eautiful 9ind*, a biography about the

famous mathematician John &ash! hen $olly#ood adapted the boo- into a mo%ie, &ash became a

celebrity, and not )ust in Princeton!

[@] "he hero of the article is Perelman! "he %illains are Bhinese mathematician .hing"ung >au and hisstudents! "he authors in%estigate and re%eal that professor >au also #or-ed on the Poincare con)ecture, and

is no# trying to con%ince the mathematical community that Perelman disco%ered nothing ne#, but merely presented a different angle on the sub)ect!

[@7] ccording to >au, the brea-do#n of the contributions to#ard the disco%ery #as as follo#sD 70Perelman, 27 $amilton, and +0 the Bhinese mathematicians! "his adds up to 107! 6nteresting

arithmetic! (ut >au gi%es himself the main credit for the final solution!



[@7] Perelman is offended! "he #orld of mathematics is rotten! Cthics has deserted it! >ou can buy, sell,

and steal e%erything!

[@8] '$e said that the #orld of mathematics is becoming corrupt, much li-e the rest of society! Perelman

belie%ed in some sense that mathematicians #ere better and more righteous than the rest of the #orld!*

[@;] t the same time the 6nternational 9athematical Hnion announces that it has a#arded Perelman a<ields 9edal! (ut he doesn4t need this gold medal!

[@=] 'Grisha nursed a grudge not only against the international, but also against the Russian mathematical

community because none of those people tried to restore the truth! nd he #as right!*

[@@] 6n ugust 2008 at the a#ard ceremony in 9adrid there are +000 mathematicians present! "hey still

hope to see Perelman! "he Fing of .pain is going to hand out the medals! (ut there is confusion ? #hile

the -ing came, Perelman didn4t!

[100] Grisha doesn4t try to change people! $e )ust stops interacting #ith those groups of people he doesn4t

li-e!

[101] Perelman scrupulously obeys ethical rules! $is teachers insisted that mathematics is not only the

Queen of the .ciences, but also the most moral science! $is teacher le-sandro% used to say, at the end of

his life, '64m not interested in geometry, 64m interested in morality!*

[102] '9athematicians ha%e a %ery clear criterion of #hat is right and #rong! 6t is often sub)ecti%e but it

still is %ery important! People can4t falsify the truth! 6f they do, they stop being professionals!*

[10+] Perelman4s grie%ances accumulate #ithin him! $e becomes more reclusi%e!

[10] 'Fleiner and Eott sent him one of the first %ersions of their manuscript #ith a note ? 'ould you li-eto ta-e a loo- at it/ 9aybe #e4%e missed something! 9aybe the e:planation is too complicated!* $e

replied, '&o! 6 don4t #ant to read your manuscript!* e sent him our boo-! 9aybe #e didn4t ha%e the right

address, but the pac-age returned unopened!*

[107] '$e is %ery persistent! nd it is a remar-able uality! ithout it he could not ha%e sol%ed the

problem! >ou ha%e to be %ery persistent to concentrate on one thing for se%en years! (ut #hen he #asfinished, he no longer had anything to apply his persistence to! nd it simply became stubbornness!*

[108] 6n 2008, after four years of re%ie#, the e:perts present their final conclusion ? the proof is correct! 6ts

author is Grigori Perelman and nobody else! "his means that Perelman deser%es a 9illennium Prie!

[10;] fter lfred &obel e:cluded mathematics as an a#ard category out of spite, mathematicians agreed

that counting dollar bills #as not for them! "hus the <ields 9edal is as prestigious as the &obel Prie! (utits cash re#ard is not large ? only 17000 Banadian dollars!

[10=] '"he benefit of these pries and medals is that it increases the people4s interest in sciences!*

[10@] O%er the years, a#ards become more generous! .e%eral years ago, &or#ay began a#arding



outstanding mathematicians the bel Prie! 6t is also almost a million dollars! "he brilliant 9i-hail

Gromo% is one of its #inner!

[110] '9athematicians don4t care about money and pries! 6t is, of course, nice to recei%e money, 6 don4t

say that it is not nice! (ut it doesn4t change anything! 6t is con%enient to li%e #hen you don4t ha%e to thin-

about money! 6f you brea- your glasses, you go and buy a ne# pair!*

[111] $ere in the Blay 6nstitute at Bambridge, this elegant piece of glass is still -ept! 6t is the 9illenniumPrie #hich has made so much noise!

[112] '"his formula is the Poincare con)ecture! 9athematicians, li-e poets, try to e:press comple:

situations #ith a fe# carefully chosen #ords!*

[11+] "he ne#s that Perelman is going to get a 9illennium Prie spreads uic-ly! 6t causes a mass hysteria!

$e is not prepared for this! "hey lie in #ait for him around his building! Ball his home! "hey compose

songs, poems, )o-es about him! Quic-ly publish his biographies and #rite fa-e inter%ie#s!

[11] hat4s the difference, they need a sensation! (ut then behind all these rumors and noise nobody pays

attention to his rare ans#ers to intrusi%e )ournalists ? '6 ha%e nothing to tell you!*

[117] nd he is right! hat they are discussing is pointless! "he Blay 6nstitute has not announced its

decision about a#arding the prie! 6nstead it delays for another years! Only in 2010, in this room, #here

one can see $ar%ard Hni%ersity through the #indo#s, the decision to a#ard Perelman is made by a specialcommitteeD

[118] 'illiam "hurston, the author of the geometriation con)ecture, #hich has the Poincare con)ecture asa special caseN .tephen .male, #ho pro%ed the Poincare con)ecture for the fi%edimensional spaceN (ruce

Fleiner, John 9organ and his coauthor Gang "ianN and 9isha Gromo%, one of the best geometers of our

time!*

[11;] "he decision has been made! (ut it doesn4t ma-e Perelman happy! &o# it is the spring of 2010! >ou

don4t ha%e to be a great mathematician to calculate that all the arguments, scandals, and %erifications too- =

years! 6t is more than he needed to pro%e the theorem! "hey are #aiting for his ans#er again! (ut no# he isnot ready #ith the ans#er!

[11=] 3Perelman4s %oice5 '6 ha%e not decided yet! "he Blay 6nstitute #ill -no# it first!*

[11@] '6t is interesting that Grigori #as really thin-ing about accepting the prie! $e really thought about it

this year! 6f before it #as clear that he #ould refuse the <ields 9edal, this time there #as at least some

hesitation! nd his mother confirmed it on the phone, that Grisha #as thin-ing!*

[120] hat #as he thin-ing about for almost 100 days ? nobody -no#s! Perhaps the main cause of his

doubts is $amilton!

[121] 'hen #e #ere discussing it in our community, #e also decided that Perelman and $amilton, they

both deser%e the a#ard!*

[121] "hus, after 17 years, Perelman #ants to repay the debt to $amilton for that brief con%ersation in



merica about the Ricci flo# and the Poincare con)ecture!

[122] 'Perelman al#ays said that the contribution of $amilton is none less significant than his! 6 thin- that#ithout $amilton it #ould ha%e been difficult to do anything!*

[12+] $amilton is surprised, he doesn4t remember that con%ersation! (esides, it4s impossible to split the

prie! 6t is strange that Perelman himself re)ects an ethical rule of mathematics!

[12] '6n all mathematical results of this le%el, you al#ays rely on the pre%ious results! (ut according to an

unspo-en rule the prie goes to the one #ho crosses the finish line!*

[127] (esides, the decision of the committee can4t be changed! On July 1, 2010, Perelman brea-s his

silence and utters the reason of his refusal ? disagreement #ith the mathematical community! '6 don4t li-etheir decisions, 6 find them un)ust!*

[128] 6n June 2010 the first 9illennium Prie ceremony is held in Paris! .tanding on the stage #ith the

prie in his hands Eandon Blay merely states that there is one problem fe#er in mathematics! C%eryone inthis room -no#s ? Grisha #ill not come and #ill not accept the money!

[12;] 'Perelman is a national hero! national hero! People tal- about it, and here is one! "hey tried to buyhim and failed! ithout a chance!*

[12=] "his story began 20 years ago! Perelman is in his 04s no#! $e4s got a different life! &obody -no#s#hat he does and #here he gets money to li%e! (ut e%eryone -no#s ? it is impossible to change him!

[12@] '<irst of all, he impo%erished his o#n mother! .he didn4t deser%e that! .he is an elderly #oman #horaised t#o amaing children during #hat #ere not the easiest years of our country! "he life is %ery difficult

for Perelman no#! nd he has been li%ing in this condition for se%eral years! 6 thin- he is li%ing on the edge

of a ner%ous brea-do#n!*

[1+0] '$e is a great mathematician! $e doesn4t teach anybody, doesn4t interact! $e is #asting his talent!

lot of energy #as used on him! 9any people taught him, he interacted #ith them! nd no# he4s gone and

not gi%ing it bac-! 6t is not ethical!*

[1+1] $e has chosen freedom for himself and destroyed his career, his friendships, and the li%es of his

family! hat has he left/ Only music!

[Bomment] .hould not it be 4friendship4 instead of 4friends4/ $e did not destroy the li%es of his friends, he

destroyed the li%es of only his family! $e )ust destroyed friendship #ith his friends!

[1+2] Our recent con%ersations #ere only about the 9ariins-y "heatre, classical music and the other thingsthat interest him!

[1++] Perelman4s million is gone! (ut he doesn4t care #hether it #as a million dollars or a fistful of coins!

$e li%es in the #orld #here the mysteries of the uni%erse are unra%eled not for money! "o ta-e this money

meant to betray your principles! $e sol%ed the problem #hich only fe# people on the planet canunderstand! 6t is ridiculous to thin- that he is interested in our opinion!



[1+] &o# people tal- about mathematician Grigori Perelman in the past tense!

[1+7] 'hen he #as in geometry, he #as the best geometer in the #orld #hen he functioned!*

[1+8] hat #ill his name say to future generations/

[1+;] '&o# he is )ust a great mathematician of the 20th century! .o he has mo%ed to another category!*

Documents

Perelman Final (English)