Search results for "01A60"
showing 5 items of 5 documents
Robert de Montessus de Ballore's 1902 theorem on algebraic continued fractions : genesis and circulation
2013
Robert de Montessus de Ballore proved in 1902 his famous theorem on the convergence of Pad\'e approximants of meromorphic functions. In this paper, we will first describe the genesis of the theorem, then investigate its circulation. A number of letters addressed to Robert de Montessus by different mathematicians will be quoted to help determining the scientific context and the steps that led to the result. In particular, excerpts of the correspondence with Henri Pad\'e in the years 1901-1902 played a leading role. The large number of authors who mentioned the theorem soon after its derivation, for instance N\"orlund and Perron among others, indicates a fast circulation due to factors that w…
The strange case of Paul Appell's last memoir on Monge's problem: "sur les déblais et remblais"
2016
International audience; We analyze a case of plagiarism that appears in a work published in 1928 by Paul Appell (1855–1930) in the collection Mémorial des sciences mathématiques. Appell's memoir entitled Le problème géométrique des déblais et remblais contains a verbatim copy of several pages from a memoir published in 1886 by Albert de Saint-Germain (1839–1914). By tracing back Appell's last years, we have found historical evidences that might cast a shadow of doubt on Appell's full responsibility by the plagiarism that appeared under his name.
Emigration of mathematicians from outside German-speaking academia 1933-1963, supported by the Society for the Protection of Science and Learning
2012
Author's version of an article published in the journal: Historia Mathematica. Also available from the publisher at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.hm.2011.08.002 Racial and political persecution of German-speaking scholars from 1933 onward has already been extensively studied. The archives of the Society for the Protection of Science and Learning (SPSL), which are deposited in the Western Manuscripts Collection at the Bodleian Library in Oxford, is a rich source of information about the emigration of European scientists, also those who did not come from German-speaking institutions. This is an account of the support given by the SPSL to the persecuted mathematicians among them. The challenges…
Toward a scientific and personal biography of Tullio Levi-Civita (1873–1941)
2005
International audience; Tullio Levi-Civita was one of the most important Italian mathematicians in the early part of the 20th century, contributing significantly to a number of research fields in mathematics and physics. In addition, he was involved in the social and political life of his time and suffered severe political and racial persecution during the period of Fascism. He tried repeatedly and in several cases successfully to help colleagues and students who were victims of anti-Semitism in Italy and Germany. His scientific and private life is well documented in the letters and documents contained in his Archive. The authors' aim is to illustrate the events of his life by means of his …
The forgotten mathematical legacy of Peano
2019
International audience; The formulations that Peano gave to many mathematical notions at the end of the 19th century were so perfect and modern that they have become standard today. A formal language of logic that he created, enabled him to perceive mathematics with great precision and depth. He described mathematics axiomatically basing the reasoning exclusively on logical and set-theoretical primitive terms and properties, which was revolutionary at that time. Yet, numerous Peano’s contributions remain either unremembered or underestimated.