| Birth Date: | 17 January 1930 |
| Birth Place: | Nanka, Anambra State, Nigeria |
| Death Date: | 2013 |
| Death Place: | Lagos, Nigeria |
| Discipline: | Mathematics |
| Sub Discipline: | Ordinary differential equations |
| Alma Mater: | University of Cambridge |
| Workplaces: | University College Ibadan University of Nigeria, Nsukka Bayero University, Kano |
James Okoye Chukuka Ezeilo (17 January 1930 – January 2013[1]) was the first professor of mathematics in Nigeria. He was often regarded as the father of modern mathematics in the country[2] and was the fifth vice chancellor of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. He was Vice Chancellor of Bayero University Kano from 1977 to 1978. He was an alumnus of Cambridge University and died in 2013.[3]
Ezeilo had been born in Nanka, a town in Anambra State.
Ezeilo pioneered the use of Leray-Schauder degree type arguments to obtain existence results for periodic solutions of ordinary differential equations.[4]
In 1959, Ezeilo studied the stability of the third-order ODE
\overset{...}{x}+f(x,
| x |
)\ddot{x}+g(x)
| x |
+h(x)=0
x=0
f(x,y)\geq\delta0
\delta0
g(y)/y\geq\delta1
\delta1
h(x)/x\geq\delta2
\delta2
h'(x)\leqc
\delta0\delta1-c\geq0
| y | \partialf |
| \partialy |
\overset{...}{x}+a\ddot{x}+b
| x |
+h(x)=p(t)
\overset{...}{X}+A\ddot{X}+B
| X |
+H(X)=P(t,X,
| X |
,\ddot{X})
In 1962, Ezeilo studied the stability of the fourth-order equation
x(4)+f(\ddot{x})\overset{...}{x}+\alpha2\ddot{x}+g(
| x |
)+h(x)+\alpha4x=p(t)
x(5)+a1x(4)+a2\overset{...}{x}+a3\ddot{x}+
| a | |||
|
+f(x)=0
x(5)+
| (4) | |
| a | |
| 1x |
+a2\overset{...}{x}+h(
| x |
)\ddot{x}+g(x)
| x |
+f(x)=0
x(5)+\psi(\ddot{x})\overset{...}{x}+\phi(\ddot{x})+\theta(
| x |
)+f(x)=0
One of the past vice chancellors of Bayero University Kano state, a Twin lecture theatre was named in his honour, J. O. C. Ezeilo Twin theatre which is located at Bayero University old campus opposite the department of Human physiology.
Ezeilo died in January 2013[10] after a brief illness in Lagos.[11]