Eri Jabotinsky,mathematician and politician: a short biography

Aequationes mathematicae - Despite the fact that Eri Jabotinsky (1910–1969) published only few (i.e. fourteen) mathematical papers, some of them had a remarkable influence in iteration...     

A combinatorial mathematician in Norway: some personal reflections

In the paper, I first try to give some impression of Norwegian contributions to combinatorics in the 20th century. This is followed by some remarks on my own combinatorial experiences.     

Mehmet Nadir: An amateur mathematician in Ottoman Turkey

This note summarizes the results of a recent survey of all the mathematical work of Mehmet Nadir, a Turkish amateur mathematician and professional educator who lived from 1856 to 1927 during the last years of the Ottoman Empire and the first years of the Turkish Republic. It is shown that, although working in isolated and adverse conditions, Nadir was able to establish a continuous correspondence with mathematicians in western Europe and, through his studies in number theory, obtained some results of lasting value.     

William Ludlam: portrait of an eighteenth-century mathematician

In 1785, William Ludlam wrote a book entitled The rudiments of mathematics. After I purchased the 1790 edition of this text some years ago at an antiquarian bookstore in Connecticut, I became interested in learning more about him. Ludlam's name had appeared as a footnote in several histories of mathematics, but little else had been written about him. I began some research, simply out of curiosity. What emerged was a story of an interesting mathematician, scientist, inventor, and clergyman—and a man who often found himself in the middle of controversy and subject to personal attacks, whether deserved or not. This article is a biography of Ludlam, in which I have used his own words, as well as those of his adversaries, wherever possible.     

Pure mathematics applied in early twentieth-century America: The case of T.H. Gronwall,consulting mathematician

Thomas Hakon Gronwall (1877–1932) was a Swedish-American mathematician with a broad range of interests in mathematical analysis, physics, and engineering. Though he was primarly known for his results in pure mathematics, his career as a “consulting mathematician” in America from 1912 to his death in 1932 provides a backdrop against which one can discuss contemporary issues involved in the increasing application of mathematics to engineering, industrial, and scientific problems. This paper attempts a summary of his major mathematical contributions to industrial, governmental, and academic institutions while relating his often difficult life during these years.     

John Reynolds of the Mint: A mathematician in the service of king and commonwealth

In his youth, John Reynolds showed a talent for arithmetic and was destined for a career as a mathematician at the Tower Mint in London. He became skilled in the algorithms needed to determine the correct relationship between the weight and purity of coins and their values. This was a matter of national importance, and his work came to the attention of King James I, who reigned from 1603 to 1625, and his chief ministers, including Robert Cecil and Francis Bacon. It seemed that John might attain high office himself, but the murky administration of the early Stuart period cast its shadow over his career. Nevertheless, for the next forty years he continued to play a major part in the nation's affairs. He produced books of tables for the valuation of coins in the commercial world, and for the highly technical work of the assayers. Also, he was actively involved in the production of standard measures and instruments used by the excise officers. His life and works illustrate how mathematical ideas were employed by the English government in the period of the early Stuart kings and the Commonwealth.     

Complex variables in junior high school: the role and potential impact of an outreach mathematician

Outreach mathematicians are college faculty who are trainedin mathematics but who undertake an active role in improvingprimary and secondary education. This role is examined througha study where an outreach mathematician introduced the conceptof complex variables to junior high school students in the UnitedStates with the goal of stimulating their interest in mathematicsand improving their algebra skills. Comparison of pre- and post-testresults showed that ninth-grade students displayed a significantchange in algebraic skills while the eighth-grade students madelittle progress. The outreach mathematician lacked some awarenessof the eighth-grade students’ foundational backgroundand motivation. This illustrates the importance of working moreclosely with the participating teacher, who understands betterthe curriculum and the students’ background knowledge,levels of maturity and levels of motivation.     

Straddling centuries: The struggles of a mathematician and his university to enter the ranks of research mathematics, 1870–1950

This paper weaves two interlocking histories together. One strand of the fabric traces the development of the American mathematician Joseph B. Reynolds from a peripheral player to an active contributor to mathematics, astronomy, and engineering and to the founding of a sectional association of mathematicians. The other piece describes the evolution of his institution, Lehigh University, from its founding in 1865 to a full-fledged research department that began producing doctorates in 1939. Both Reynolds and Lehigh straddled the line between the pre- and post-Chicago eras in American mathematics.     

Leading students towards the formal world of mathematical thinking: a mathematician’s reflections on teaching eigentheory

ABSTRACT

In this study, we analysed a mathematician’s teaching journals on eigenvalues and eigenvectors in a first-year linear algebra course. The research team employed Tall’s [How humans learn to think mathematically: Exploring the three worlds of mathematics. Cambridge University Press] three-world model of embodied, symbolic and formal as a framework for understanding the mathematician and teacher’s pedagogical reflections as he led the class to the formal world. In order to reach the formal world, he used a sequence of tasks that emphasized embodied and symbolic, as well as formal thinking. The analysis of the journals showed that the mathematician faced challenges in leading the class towards the formal world. The study also revealed that the mathematician strived to build a concept image, that, while perhaps mirroring his own, did not resonate with the students.     

Sieve of war: the legacy of Jitsuro Nagura

This paper contains a biographical sketch of the late Japanese number theorist Jitsuro Nagura (1901–68) based on material provided by his eldest son Riichi Nagura, and a synopsis of his two surviving mathematical papers, the first a well-known article on primes in short intervals, and the second an unpublished draft of a proof relating to complex polynomials.