Giovanni Vidossich – författare

During the fifties, one of the authors, G. Stampacchia, had prepared some lecture notes on ordinary differential equations for a course in ad­ analysis. These remained for a long time unused because he was no vanced longer very interested in the study of such equations. We now see, though, that numerous applications to biology, chemistry, economics, and medicine have recently been added to the traditional ones in mechanics; also, there has been in these last years a reemergence of interest in nonlinear analy­ sis, of which the theory of ordinary differential euqations is one of the principal sources of methods and problems. Hence the idea to write a book. Our text, based on the old notes and experience gained in many courses, seminars, and conferences, both in Italy and abroad, aims to give a simple and rapid introduction to the various themes, problems, and methods of the theory of ordinary differential equations. The book has been conceived in such a way so that even the reader who has merely had a first course in calculus may be able to study it and to obtain a panoramic vision of the theory. We have tried to avoid abstract formalism, preferring instead a discursive style, which should make the book accessible to engineers and physicists without specific preparation in modern mathematics. For students of mathematics, it pro­ vides motivation for the subject of more advanced analysis courses.

During the fifties, one of the authors, G. Stampacchia, had prepared some lecture notes on ordinary differential equations for a course in ad­ analysis. These remained for a long time unused because he was no vanced longer very interested in the study of such equations. We now see, though, that numerous applications to biology, chemistry, economics, and medicine have recently been added to the traditional ones in mechanics; also, there has been in these last years a reemergence of interest in nonlinear analy­ sis, of which the theory of ordinary differential euqations is one of the principal sources of methods and problems. Hence the idea to write a book. Our text, based on the old notes and experience gained in many courses, seminars, and conferences, both in Italy and abroad, aims to give a simple and rapid introduction to the various themes, problems, and methods of the theory of ordinary differential equations. The book has been conceived in such a way so that even the reader who has merely had a first course in calculus may be able to study it and to obtain a panoramic vision of the theory. We have tried to avoid abstract formalism, preferring instead a discursive style, which should make the book accessible to engineers and physicists without specific preparation in modern mathematics. For students of mathematics, it pro­ vides motivation for the subject of more advanced analysis courses.

This book is unique in the current scenario because it provides a complete treatment of modern Brouwer and of Leray-Schauder degree theories, including detailed proofs and selected applications to differential equations.  In addition,  new results and open problems appear throughout. It aims to introduce Ph.D. students to research on nonlinear boundary value problems  for ordinary, elliptic, and evolution equations using the topological methods of nonlinear functional analysis. It is suitable for self-study, as all proofs are detailed, with prerequisites provided when necessary. It is based on personal notes compiled over more than forty years of teaching.GV studied Mathematics in Pisa  during the 1960s with G.Stampacchia as supervisor. He has been  professor at the Universities of Brasilia and Trieste, ending his career at SISSA (the research institute he co-founded together with P.Budinich, L.Fonda and L.Stasi). He has held visiting positions in Brazil, Peru, Somalia, South Africa and USA. After an initial activity in General Topology, his main research topic has become BVPs of ODEs in connection with the topological methods of Nonlinear Functional Analysis.