Leonhard Euler (eBook)

Emil A. Fellmann (Autor)

eBook Download: PDF

2007
XVI, 180 Seiten
Springer Basel (Verlag)
978-3-7643-7539-3 (ISBN)

Infos

Euler was not only by far the most productive mathematician in the history of mankind, but also one of the greatest scholars of all time. He attained, like only a few scholars, a degree of popularity and fame which may well be compared with that of Galilei, Newton, or Einstein.

Moreover he was a cosmopolitan in the truest sense of the word; he lived during his first twenty years in Basel, was active altogether for more than thirty years in Petersburg and for a quarter of a century in Berlin.

Leonhard Euler's unusually rich life and broadly diversified activity in the immediate vicinity of important personalities which have made history, may well justify an exposition.

This book is based in part on unpublished sources and comes right out of the current research on Euler. It is entirely free of formulae as it has been written for a broad audience with interests in the history of culture and science.

Inhalt

Contents 7
Preliminary remarks 10
Prologue 11
Basel 1707–1727 14
Euler's autobiography 14
Euler's genealogy 20
The parents 22
Childhood and youth 24
The time in Basel until 1727 27
The first Petersburg period 1727 – 1741 The establishment of the Academy of Petersburg 35
Euler's call – Journey to Russia 39
The first scholars at the Academy of Petersburg 44
First years in the tsardom 49
First principal works 54
Farewell from Petersburg 67
The Berlin period 1741–1766 71
New beginning in 71
New beginning in Frederick’s Prussia 71
Euler’s first activities in Berlin 74
Other major works 77
Chess 89
The great Trio 93
Optics 106
Break with Frederick –– Goodbye Berlin 118
– – Goodbye Berlin 118
The second Petersburg period 1766–1783 Firmly in the saddle 126
The “Algebra for beginners” 131
Astronomy* 133
The discord about Leonhard Euler’s second marriage 135
The end 140
Epilogue 145
Translators’ Notes 150
Notes 151
Chronological table 165
Bibliography 168
1. Abbreviations used throughout 168
2. Bibliographies 168
3. Works 169
4. Edition of correspondences 170
5. Memorial publications and omnibus volumes ( selection) 171
6. Biographies (without dictionary-articles) 171
7. Secondary literature 172
Testimonials 179
Index of names 181
About the author 185
Sources for the illustrations 186

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 5.4.2007
• Übersetzer: E. Gautschi, Walter Gautschi
• Zusatzinfo: XVI, 180 p. 58 illus.
• Verlagsort: Basel
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Geisteswissenschaften ► Geschichte
• Themenwelt: Mathematik / Informatik ► Mathematik ► Allgemeines / Lexika
• Themenwelt: Technik
• Schlagworte: Boundary element method • Euler, Leonhard • Fellmann • Form • History of Mathematics • Isaac Newton • PROLOG • Story • Time
• ISBN-10: 3-7643-7539-6 / 3764375396
• ISBN-13: 978-3-7643-7539-3 / 9783764375393