Three Mathematicians and One Book

I’ve been throwing away my old math books: the information is easily accessible online. Yesterday, I stumbled upon a book I hadn’t used in a long time. I opened it and started laughing. The inscription says, “To Tanya, in memory of Sasha Beilinson’s PhD thesis defense. May you always be in a good mood. Volodya, June 30, 1988.” Suddenly, this one book connected three famous mathematicians: Neil Koblitz, Alexander Beilinson, and Volodya. For my readers who don’t speak Russian: Volodya is the nickname for Vladimir. Can you guess who Volodya is? Share: