Exact sciences have long been valued by mankind. For example, the ancient Greek mathematician Euclid made such an important contribution to this field that some of his findings are still studied in school today. The discoveries belong to both women and men, people from different countries and representatives of different centuries. What figures are the most significant? Let's take a closer look.
Ada Lovelace
This Englishwoman plays an important role. Women mathematicians may not be so numerous, but their contribution is often fundamental. This directly applies to the work of Ada Lovelace. The daughter of the famous poet Byron, she was born in December 1815. From childhood, she showed talents for mathematical science, quickly grasping any new topic. However, traditionally feminine talents also distinguished Ada - she played music beautifully and in general was an extremely refined lady. Together with Charles Babbage, she worked on the development of an arithmetic program for calculating machines. On the cover of the general work were only her initials - women mathematicians at that time were something indecent. Today it is believed that her inventions were the first step of mankind towards the creation of computer programming languages. It is Ada Lovelace who owns the concept of a cycle distributing cards, a setamazing algorithms and calculations. Even now, her work is of a high standard worthy of a vocational school graduate.
Emmy Noether
Another noteworthy scientist was born in the family of mathematician Max Noether from Erlangen. At the time of her admission, girls were allowed to enter the university, and she was officially enrolled as a student. She studied with Paul Gordan, who also helped Emmy defend her dissertation on invariant theory. In 1915, Noether made a significant contribution to the work on the general theory of relativity. Her calculations were admired by Albert Einstein himself. The famous mathematician Hilbert wanted to make her an assistant professor at the University of Göttingen, but the prejudices of the professors did not allow Emmy to get positions. However, she often lectured. In 1919, she nevertheless managed to get a well-deserved place, and in 1922 she became a tenured professor. It was Noether who created the direction of abstract algebra. Emmy was remembered by her contemporaries as an amazingly smart and charming woman. Correspondence with her was conducted by leading experts, including Russian mathematicians. Her work influences science to this day.
Nikolai Lobachevsky
The first mathematicians often achieved such success that their significance is noticeable in modern science. This is also true for Nikolai Lobachevsky. From 1802 to 1807 he studied at the gymnasium, and then entered the Kazan University, where he was noted for his extraordinary knowledge of physics and mathematics, and in 1811 he receivedmaster's level and began to prepare for a professorship. In 1826, he wrote a work on the principles of geometry, which revolutionized the concept of space. In 1827 he became rector of the university. Over the years of work, he created a number of works on mathematical analysis, on physics and mechanics, raised the study of higher algebra to another level. In addition, his ideas even influenced Russian art - traces of Lobachevsky are visible in the work of Khlebnikov and Malevich.
Henri Poincare
In the early twentieth century, many mathematicians worked on the theory of relativity. One of them was Henri Poincare. His idealism was not approved in Soviet times, so Russian scientists used his theories only in special works - without them it was impossible to seriously study mathematics, physics or astronomy. As early as the end of the nineteenth century, Henri Poincaré developed the theory of system dynamics and topology. Over time, his work became the basis for the study of bifurcation points, catastrophes, demographic and macroeconomic processes. Interestingly, Poincare himself recognized the limitations of the scientific algorithm of cognition and even dedicated a philosophical book to this. In addition, he published an article that first used the principle of relativity - ten years before Einstein.
Sofya Kovalevskaya
Few Russian women mathematicians are represented in history. Sofia Kovalevskaya was born in January 1850. She was not only a mathematician, but also a publicist, and also the first lady to become a corresponding member of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences. Mathematicians chose her without objection. From 1869 she studied at Heidelberg, and by 1874 she presented three papers to the scientific community, as a result of which the Göttingen University awarded her the title of Doctor of Philosophy. However, in Russia she failed to get a place at the university. In 1888 she wrote a paper on the rotation of a rigid body, for which she received an award from the Swedish Academy of Sciences. She was also engaged in literary work - she wrote the story "The Nihilist" and the drama "The Struggle for Happiness", as well as the family chronicle "Memories of Childhood", written about the life of the late nineteenth century.
Evariste Galois
French mathematicians made many important discoveries in the field of algebra and geometry. One of the leading connoisseurs was Evariste Galois, who was born in October 1811 near Paris. As a result of diligent preparation, he entered the Lyceum of Louis the Great. Already in 1828 he published the first work that covered the topic of periodic continued fractions. In 1830 he was admitted to the Normal School, but a year later he was expelled for inappropriate behavior. A talented scientist began revolutionary activities and ended his days in 1832. He left a testament containing the foundations of modern algebra and geometry, as well as the classification of irrationality - this doctrine was named after Galois.
Pierre Fermat
Some eminent mathematiciansleft such a significant mark that their work is still being studied. Fermat's theorem remained unproven for a long time, torturing the best minds. And this despite the fact that Pierre worked in the seventeenth century. He was born in August 1601, in the family of a merchant consul. In addition to the exact sciences, Fermat knew languages - Latin, Greek, Spanish, Italian, and was also famous as an excellent historian of antiquity. He chose law as his profession. In Orleans, he received a bachelor's degree, after which he moved to Toulouse, where he became a councilor of the Parliament. All his life he wrote mathematical treatises, which became the basis of analytic geometry. But all the contribution made by him was appreciated only after his death - not a single work had been published before. The most significant works are devoted to mathematical analysis, methods for calculating areas, largest and smallest values, curves and parabolas.
Carl Gauss
Not all mathematicians and their discoveries are so remembered in the history of mankind as Gauss. The German leader was born in April 1777. Even in childhood, he showed his amazing talent in mathematics, and by the beginning of the nineteenth century he was a recognized scientist and corresponding member of several Academies of Sciences. Created a fundamental work on number theory and higher algebra. The main contribution was to the solution of the problem of constructing a regular seventeen-gon; on its basis, Gauss began to develop an algorithm for calculating the planet's orbit from several observations. Fundamental work "Theory of motioncelestial bodies" became the basis for modern astronomy. The territory on the map of the Moon is named after him.
Karl Weierstrass
This German mathematician was born in Ostenfeld. Educated at the Faculty of Law, but all the years of study he preferred to study mathematics. In 1840 he wrote a paper on elliptic functions. It already traced his revolutionary discoveries. The strict doctrine of Weierstrass formed the basis of mathematical analysis. Since 1842 he worked as a teacher, and in his spare time he was engaged in research. In 1854 he published an article on Abelian functions and received a doctorate from the University of Königsber. Leading scientists have published rave reviews of it. In 1856, another brilliant article saw the light, after which Weierstrass was accepted as a professor at the University of Berlin, and also made him a member of the Academy of Sciences. The impressive quality of the lecture made him famous all over the world. He introduced the theory of real numbers, solved many problems of mechanics and geometry. In 1897 he died due to complicated influenza. A lunar crater and the modern Berlin Mathematical Institute are named after him. Weierstrass is still known as one of the most gifted educators in the history of Germany and around the world.
Jean Baptiste Fourier
The name of this scientist is well known all over the world. Fourier was a teacher at the Paris Polytechnic School. During the time of Napoleon, he participated in military campaigns, and after that he was appointed prefect of Isère, where he took up revolutionary theory in physics - he began to studywarmth. Since 1816 he was a member of the Paris Academy of Sciences and published his work. It was devoted to the analytical theory of heat. Before his death in May 1830, he also managed to publish studies on heat conduction, the calculation of the roots of algebraic equations, and the methods of Isaac Newton. In addition, he developed a method for representing functions as trigonometric series. He is now known as Fourier. The scientist was also able to improve the representation of the function using the integral - this technique is also widely used in modern science. Fourier managed to prove that any arbitrary line can be represented by a single analytical expression. In 1823, he discovered a thermoelectric result with the property of superposition. Jean-Baptiste Fourier's name is associated with many theories and discoveries that matter to every modern mathematician or physicist.
