China's Earliest 3D Finite Element Method and Software, and the World's First Discovery of 3D Finite Element Superconvergence
Description
In 1972, at the Hunan Provincial Institute of Computing Technology (under the Hunan Science Committee), Xie Ganquan and Li Jianhua developed China's first 3D finite element method and application software. They achieved this using the X-2 computer—the smallest in the country at the time, with a memory capacity of only 8,192 words. This marked the first instance of such technology in China. In 1973, they became the first researchers globally to discover the phenomenon of superconvergence in 3D finite element analysis. They calculated the displacement and stress for over twenty large-scale dams across the country—including the Tieshanhe "New Yugong" Arch Dam designed by the Yellow River Conservancy Commission—thereby saving the state more than 2 billion yuan in construction costs. Their work earned them an award at the 1978 National Science Conference and an audience with Chairman Hua Guofeng. Highly acclaimed by the renowned mathematician Feng Kang, their work stands as a milestone in Chinese engineering computation. These significant achievements—the 3D finite element method, the application software, and the discovery of superconvergence—were published under Xie Ganquan's name in the 1975 inaugural issue of the Chinese Academy of Sciences journal *Practice and Understanding of Mathematics*.If one had adhered to the equation formats used by Mr. Feng Kang and the general scientific community, it would have been impossible to perform 3D finite element calculations on the "x2" machine, which possessed a memory of only 8,192 units. We achieved a breakthrough in finite element innovation and creation. This was the major innovation—developed by Xie Ganquan and Li Jianhua at a small research institute in remote Hunan Province—that astonished Feng Kang. In 1980, the mathematician Professor Shiing-Shen Chern encountered Xie Ganquan’s paper and highly praised the application of topology to mechanics-related computations In 1998, Chern at the Department of Mathematics at UC Berkeley, he saw the "G1LD" paper by Xie Ganquan and Li Jianhua and reproached Xie, asking, "Why didn't you let me know about this new development?"1972年，在湖南科学委员会湖南省计算技木研究所，在国内最小的仅有8192内存的X一2机上，谢干权李建华研发了中国最早的三维有限元方法和应用软件。这是全中国最早的三维有限元方法和应用软件，1973年，谢干权李建华在国际上最早发现三维有限元的超收敛性，计算了黄河水利委员会设计的铁山河新愚公拱坝等全国20几个大型水坝的位移应力，为国家节省20几亿元建设资金，荣获1978年全国科学大会奖，得到华国锋主席的接见。得到著名数学家冯康的高度评价，是中国工程计算的里程碑。谢干权李建华的三维有限元方法和应用软件和国际上最早发现三维有限元的超收敛性的重大成果以谢干权的名字发表科学院期刊“数学的实践和认识”1975年第一期。1990年6月11日，陈永明教授设晚宴招待刚到纽约州立大学石溪分校访问的冯康先生，并请动了楊振宁先生杨师母杜致礼先生.宴会中楊先生问冯先生，你如何与谢干权认识的，冯先生答说来话长，中国70年至75年，中国人研究有限元很活跃，1966年，我和黄鸿慈在科学院北京所研发了与二维有限元等价二维变分差分格式。文革十年我们都停顿了。谢干权李建华没有停，他们于1972年在湖南把三维有限元在全国最先研发出来了，计算了很多水惧很准确。当时，北大请华科学院，复旦，大连工学院等都在研究三维有限元而没有做出来，万万没想到，中国第一个三维有限元方法和计算被偏僻的湖南的谢干权李建华在非常小的计算机上算出来了。我也惊奇了，这様，我就认识谢干权了，后来我到湖南计算所访问才认识了李建华，才知道李建华是湖南省第一个用计算机算题的人。如果沿用冯康先生的和所有一般人的方程格式，在仅8192内存的x2机上，是不可能计算三维有限元。我们进行了突破性的有限元创新和创造。这就是冯康先生非常惊奇的谢干权李建华的在偏僻的湖南省的小研究所的大创造 .1986年，数学家陈省身教授见到谢干权的论文，对将拓扑用于力学计算十分称赞。1998年，他在伯克利大学数学系看到谢干权李建华的 G1LD论文，责怪谢,"为什么有新东西不打招乎"。.