Mauro Picone, Sandro Faedo, and the numerical solution of partial differential equations in Italy (1928–1953)

In this paper we revisit the pioneering work on the numerical analysis of partial differential equations (PDEs) by two Italian mathematicians, Mauro Picone (1885–1977) and Sandro Faedo (1913–2001). We argue that while the development of constructive methods for the solution of PDEs was central to Picone’s vision of applied mathematics, his own work in this area had relatively little direct influence on the emerging field of modern numerical analysis. We contrast this with Picone’s influence through his students and collaborators, in particular on the work of Faedo which, while not the result of immediate applied concerns, turned out to be of lasting importance for the numerical analysis of time-dependent PDEs.