Christopher Hammond

Associate Professor of Mathematics
Chair, Department of Mathematics
Joined Connecticut College: 2003

Education
B.A. University of the South; M.S., Ph.D. University of Virginia

Specializations
Operator theory
Complex analysis

Contact Christopher Hammond: cnham@conncoll.edu

At Connecticut College, Professor Hammond's research belongs to an area of analysis known as function-theoretic operator theory. In essence, this subject seeks to relate problems of current interest in operator theory to questions in the more "classical" context of complex analysis. (This type of intersection is a common theme throughout mathematics, and greatly enriches the aesthetic dimension of the discipline.) Hammond's own work pertains to a particular class of vector spaces whose elements are analytic functions, and certain linear transformations on these spaces.

While pure mathematics occupies a great deal of Professor Hammond's attention, he also maintains an active interest in the liberal arts, particularly in topics relating to literature and religion. He is delighted whenever he can find connections between mathematics and the arts. He has given several talks on Dante's use of mathematical imagery in the Divine Comedy, as well as a lecture on the place of science and mathematics in Gulliver's Travels.

Professor Hammond's recent publications include the papers "Adjoints of composition operators with rational symbol" and "Norm inequalities for composition operators on Hardy and weighted Bergman spaces." He has given numerous talks on his research, most recently at the International Workshop on Operator Theory and its Applications (IWOTA) in Williamsburg, Virginia.

He has taught a variety of courses at Connecticut College, including calculus, differential equations, linear algebra, real analysis, complex analysis, abstract algebra, and topology. In the fall of 2005 he introduced an interdisciplinary freshman seminar entitled "Intimations of Infinity."

He is currently serving as chair of the College's AAPC (Academic and Administrative Procedures Committee).

View the department of mathematics website.

"The mathematician's patterns, like the painter's or the poet's, must be beautiful; the ideas, like the colours or the words, must fit together in a harmonious way. Beauty is the first test: there is no permanent place in the world for ugly mathematics." - from A Mathematician's Apology by G. H. Hardy

"Mathematics is a creative art. Words and symbols are used in its compositions and, like all art, it is limited only by the potentialities of its practitioners. Few people possess the gifts required to produce great mathematics, but almost every student can share the creative spark." - from Mathematics: A Creative Art by Julia Wells Bower