After returning from Brazil, Lu Zhou began to study the plasma turbulence phenomenon.
Even though he didn't go on a retreat, his life was quite regular. He basically commuted back and forth between his bedroom, the Princeton Institute for Advanced Study, and the PPPL laboratory.
In terms of difficulty, studying the plasma turbulence phenomenon wasn't any easier than studying the Navier – Stokes equation.
Also, the difficulty of the two was completely different.
The latter was equivalent to using abstract mathematical tools to prove whether the solution existed or was smooth. The former was equivalent to finding a "special solution" for a specific 3D Navier – Stokes equation.
So far, there were only around a hundred special solutions to the Navier – Stokes equation. Most of them either eliminated the time term or limited the solution to a two-dimensional problem.
As for those who did CFD or applied mathematics, most of their results were phenomenological models mixed with empirical formulas and empirical parameters. For Lu Zhou, there wasn't much reference value.
This meant that Lu Zhou had to complete this difficult task from scratch. He didn't even have any references.
Of course, it wasn't like he didn't have anything he could rely on.
For example, the L Manifold that he created when studying the Navier – Stokes equation was a very useful theoretical tool.
Not just that, but after he came back from the conference, his mathematics level had increased from level 6 to level 7. He was only three levels away from level 10. His mathematics talent and intuition were completely different from a few weeks ago.
Even though Lu Zhou wasn't 100% confident, he was 90% confident that he could solve this problem.
At most, it would take him a bit more time …
Three weeks after Lu Zhou returned to Princeton, the month of August was coming to an end. Lu Zhou finally received a letter from the Clay Institute.
[Dear Professor Lu Zhou, I am James Carlson, Chairman of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Clay Mathematics Institute.
[According to the opinions of the twelve anonymous reviewers, as well as the opinions of the International Mathematical Union, we believe that you have completed the proof of the existence and smoothness of the Navier – Stokes equation solution.
[The solution to this problem will have a huge impact on the development of mathematical theory and applications. We sincerely thank you for your contribution to the mathematics community and the world's scientific development.]
[According to the opinion of your collaborator, Professor Charles Louis Fefferman, we believe that your work has made a decisive contribution to this issue. Therefore, after a vote by the board of directors of the Clay Institute, we have decided to award you a million dollars in advance …]
The reason why it was said to be in advance was because every "Millennium Prize Mathematics Problem" did not immediately receive a prize.
According to the rules, any solution had to be published in a world-renowned mathematics journal for at least two years, and it had to be recognized by the mathematics community before it could be reviewed by the Clay Mathematics Institute's Scientific Advisory Board.
However, this rule was not absolute.
For example, Perelman's thesis had never been published in a "world-renowned" mathematics journal. When Carlson, the director of the Clay Institute, visited the hermit in St. Petersburg, he didn't even have to wait for two years …
Of course, Carlson didn't meet Perelman in the end.
Considering that Lu Zhou's report was held at the International Congress of Mathematicians in the form of a special report, and all of the controversial parts had already been answered, it seemed like there was no need to wait for the academic community to reach a consensus.
Therefore, the Clay Institute made this decision.
Also, in the email, the Clay Institute also attached the conditions for receiving the prize.
As the thesis of the century announced at the Millennium Conference, Carlson hoped that the award ceremony could be held in a grand manner.
The award ceremony would be held at the Collège de France in Paris, where the Clay Institute announced the Millennium Prize Mathematics Problem. At that time, the Clay Institute and the European Mathematical Society would hold a special award ceremony to award him the million dollar prize.
As for what kind of ceremony it was, no one knew.
Because Perelman, who proved the Poincaré conjecture, was too unique, even though this award ceremony was planned more than a decade ago, it had never been held.
As for Carlson's invitation, if it was a month ago, Lu Zhou might have bought a plane ticket to receive the prize. After all, it would be a waste not to take the million-dollar prize.
But now, his research on the plasma turbulence phenomenon was at a critical moment, and he was neither willing nor interested in traveling.
After thinking for a bit, Lu Zhou politely replied to an email saying that he was in a critical period of his research, so he didn't have the time to fly to Paris. But at the same time, he also indicated that he didn't reject the million-dollar prize and attached his bank account number at the end of the email.
What he meant was, just transfer the money to my card.
As for the medal or certificate, if you want to give it to me, you can mail it …
When Carlson saw this email, he nearly spat out blood on the screen.
This was even more annoying than Perelman, who gave him the cold shoulder.
Forget about the freak who kept his door closed, what kind of trick was this to make him transfer money directly?!
Why are the proofs of the Millennium Prize Problems so weird?!
Carlson replied to the email and firmly told Lu Zhou that it was impossible.
As for the reason, it was simple!
Two of the Millennium Prize Problems had been solved, but the Clay Institute had never held an award ceremony. If Lu Zhou wanted to receive the prize, he had to come to Paris in person.
Of course, in his reply, Professor Carlson also expressed that he understood how important it was for a scholar to have a consistent research.
If Lu Zhou really didn't have the time, they were willing to discuss a suitable award date with him and hold the award ceremony.
When Lu Zhou saw Professor Carlson's reply, he had a headache about these guys' formalism.
The Clay Institute was in Cambridge, Massachusetts, which wasn't very far away. If he wanted to go, he didn't even need to take a plane. He could just drive his Ford Explorer.
However, these people didn't want the award ceremony to be held in their own home. Instead, they had to go to the Institut de France in Paris.
It sounded like this would waste at least a week of Lu Zhou's time.
For Lu Zhou, who was in the middle of an interesting research project, this was unacceptable.
Lu Zhou thought for a bit and continued to write a reply.
[… I can't give you an exact time, but once I have results on the plasma turbulence phenomenon, maybe I can take the time to receive the award.]
After the email was written, Lu Zhou clicked send and closed his email. He continued to think about the experimental data that he had stored on his computer for half a year.
When Professor Carlson, who was at the Clay Institute in Massachusetts, saw this email, he didn't say a word. Instead, he looked at his secretary, Daft, speechlessly.
Daft sighed and patted Professor Carlson on the shoulder. He said, "… This is probably the most euphemistic rejection."
Even though he wasn't in the field of fluid mechanics and wasn't even an academic, the special nature of the Clay Institute allowed him to come into contact with many cutting-edge research developments.
Turbulence was a famous chaotic system. It was also a problem that many physicists and mathematicians couldn't solve.
Not to mention that the object of research was plasma …
In his opinion, this email was the same as rejecting the award.
Carlson took off his glasses and placed his arms on the table. He pinched his eyebrows.
"I don't understand … Why? Why is it so hard to give money? "
He really felt tired.
He had this feeling when he was the director of the institute. Now that he was the chairman of the Scientific Advisory Board, his feelings hadn't changed at all.
He didn't want to do anything else. His only wish was to stand in the hall of the Institut de France and award the Millennium Prize Problem solver a million-dollar prize and a medal of honor before he retired.
But why is it so hard to realize this wish?
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