![]() ![]() I learned that Euler enjoyed smoking Virginia tobacco, playing chess and performing on the clavier also that his wife feared fires in St. It also had its frustrations and hardships: in Russia, the Orthodox Church and the aristocrats opposed the creation and work of their Scientific Academy in Prussia, the Academy’s patron Frederick II was often away fighting wars and did not provide the support needed by his institution. Life as an academician was not all glamorous. This is the beauty of Calinger’s narrative, the daily detail of the times. The reader learns about not only Euler’s accomplishments but also the environment in which he grows and labors. Outside of the academic world, Euler’s Letters to a German Princess, 1768–1772, when released to the general public, caused an intellectual stir and advanced the mood of the Enlightenment. He further promoted this effort through a network of active correspondents. In his participation in the work of his resident Scientific Academies and his remote influence on the Académie Royale des Sciences de Paris, especially through the suggestion of “Prize Questions”, he shaped the direction of all of eighteenth century mathematics. His major works and contributions to mathematics - establishing a foundation for differential equations and the calculus of variation pioneering developments in number theory and topology and strengthening the studies of terrestrial and celestial mechanics through the applications of mathematical analysis - are isolated and examined in detail.Įuler can be considered the major force in the field of modern applied mathematics. Petersburg and the Royal Prussian Academy of Sciences in Berlin is meticulously traced out. Euler’s life and work at the Imperial Academy of Sciences in St. This background is obvious in his writing. Ronald Calinger has solved that problem with his Leonard Euler: Mathematical Genius in the Enlightenment.Ĭalinger, a recognized historian of mathematics and an Euler scholar and researcher, is the only historian of mathematics I know who was actually trained as an historian. ![]() But despite this flood of Euler admiration and information, something more was needed to better appreciate Euler, the man, the mathematician and his special form of genius: a comprehensive biography. The tercentenary of Euler’s birth in 2007 was celebrated around the world by a series of association meetings and presentations reviewing his mathematical accomplishments in particular, the Mathematical Association of America published a tribute series of five volumes examining his life and mathematical contributions. He was certainly a busy man who left his mark on calculus and the study of differential equations. Astute students of calculus might recognize his name associated with the notation “\(y = f(x)\)”, the exponential constant \(e\), or a dozen other mathematical concepts attributed to him. Historians of mathematics remember him as a prolific author and versatile mathematician who had some association with the Russian Academy of Science. Leonhard Euler (1707–1783) is a name familiar to almost any person who has pursued a study of mathematics beyond elementary analysis. ![]()
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