Brian Blank

Brian Erf Blank is an associate professor of mathematics at Washington University in St. Louis. He received his Ph.D. in 1980 at Cornell University, with Anthony Knapp as advisor. His 20th century work involved harmonic analysis. He has also co-authored a pair of calculus textbooks with his Washington University colleague, Steven Krantz. Titled Calculus: Single Variable and Calculus: Multivariable, the textbooks used to be used in calculus classes at Washington University. He is considered a mathematical pioneer due to his invention of the term "equicardinalitous." Outside of mathematics, Blank is considered an expert in portmanteaus and the Greek letter ξ.