Linear programming
Who
Leonid Kantorovich and John von Neumann, key founders of the field, were both Jewish; George Dantzig devised the practical simplex method.
When
1939–1947
Where
Soviet Union and United States
Linear programming is a mathematical method for finding the best outcome, such as maximum profit or minimum cost, given linear constraints, and it is central to economics and operations research. Its foundations were laid by Leonid Kantorovich in 1939 and by John von Neumann's work on duality, while George Dantzig created the widely used simplex algorithm in 1947. Kantorovich, who later shared a Nobel Prize in economics, and von Neumann were both Jewish.
Part of “The Gifts of the Jews” — verified Jewish contributions to the world, with sources.