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Three mathematicians have their
birthdays in April: April 1: Sophie Germain
(1776-1831)
April 15: Leohard Euler (1707-1783)
April 30: Karl Friedrich Gauss (1777-1855)
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What a month! |
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Sophie Germain was born in 1776, in France,
at a time when it was felt that the study of mathematics, and other "brain work"
put a serious strain on young women. Her parents did everything
they could to discourage her studying.They took away her heat and light so she would be
forced to sleep instead of study. They hid her clothes. But she was
determined.
She taught herself Differential Calculus, without the aid of a tutor.
By the time she was 18, the Ecole Polytechnic was founded. Many Frech
mathematicians were lectureres there, but she was not permitted to attend.
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Read what you can about Euler and Gauss.
And stay tuned for some interesting tidbits about them. |
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With the help of friends, she was able to get lecture notes from those who
spoke there, including Lagrange's notes on analysis.
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At the end of each term, students submitted reports on their
work. Sophi submitted a paper on analysis to Lagrange under the pen name M. LeBlanc.
He was so impressed, he wanted to meet the author personally, to congratulate him. |
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Sophie Germaine was born during the year of the American
Declaration of Independence. The last two digits of the year of her death are
the eleventh prime number. Without looking at the top of the screen, what was the
year in which she died?
Euler was the first to use some very common symbols. What were some of
Euler's "Firsts?" |
Stay tuned to read what happened when he discovered Monsieur LeBlanc was a
woman. In the meantime, discover what you can about the other two great
mathematicians who share this month, Euler and Gauss, and try the following problem at the
left, and below.
What is the sum of the numbers from 1 to 100?.
(See if you can find the famous story of how Gauss solved that.) |
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