Abel niels henrik biography examples

Inthe Abel Prize was established in his memory. But I would not like to part from this ideal type of researcher, such as has seldom appeared in the history of mathematics, without evoking a figure from another sphere who, in spite of his totally different field, still seems related. Thus, although Abel shared with many mathematicians a complete lack of musical talent, I will not sound absurd if I compare his kind of productivity and his personality with Mozart 's.

Thus one might erect a monument to this divinely inspired mathematician like the one to Mozart in Vienna: simple and unassuming he stands there listening, while graceful angels float about, playfully bringing him inspiration from another world. Instead, I must mention the very different type of memorial that was in fact erected to Abel in Christiania and which must greatly disappoint anyone familiar with his nature.

On a towering, steep block of granite a youthful athlete of the Byronic type steps over two greyish sacrificial victims, his direction toward the heavens. If needed be, one might take the hero to be a symbol of the human spirit, but one ponders the deeper significance of the two monsters in vain. Are they the conquered quintic equations or elliptic functions?

Or the sorrows and cares of his everyday life? The pedestal of the monument bears, in immense letters, the inscription ABEL. Contents move to sidebar hide. Article Talk. Read Edit View history. Tools Tools. Download as PDF Printable version. In other projects. Wikimedia Commons Wikiquote Wikidata item. Norwegian mathematician — This article needs additional citations for verification.

Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. NedstrandDenmark—Norway. FrolandNorway. Life [ edit ]. Early life [ edit ]. Cathedral School and Royal Frederick University [ edit ]. Career [ edit ]. Death [ edit ].

Abel niels henrik biography examples: Niels Henrik Abel was

Contributions to mathematics [ edit ]. Legacy [ edit ]. See also: List of things named after Niels Henrik Abel. Abelmonumentet in front of the Royal Palace, Oslo. Niels Henrik Abel memorial in Gjerstad. See also [ edit ]. Notes [ edit ]. He wrote in a letter in to professor Bjerknes in Valle, that he was told by locals that one of Abel's sons was born at former bailiff Marstrand's house in Nedstrand.

References [ edit ]. Store Norske Leksikon in Norwegian. Retrieved 5 May Retrieved 12 September Biography: Upbringing and schooling. Biography: A student without any opportunities for further study. Biography: The great journey abroad. Biography: His last years. Biography: The legacy of Abel. Inthe year before he died, he received support and a promise of financial contributions for the establishment of an Abel fund from most of the leading mathematical centres of Europe.

The plans were to award an international Abel prize for an outstanding effort in pure mathematics every fifth year from this fund. Most of these contacts and promises of support were made to Lie personally, so when Lie passed away in Februarythe efforts to establish the Abel fund were discontinued. There were not enough funds for it after the commemoration in and the work on the Abel monument.

Under the direction of the Scientific Society of Christiania currently the Norwegian Academy of Science and Lettersefforts were made to draw up statutes and rules for the gold medal for the Abel prize right up until the dissolution of the union between Sweden and Norway in June put an end to all further plans. Holmboe was able to help Abel gain a scholarship to remain at school and Abel was able to enter the University of Christiania inten years after the university was founded.

Holmboe had raised money from his colleagues to enable Abel to study at the university and he graduated in While in his final year at school, however, Abel had begun working on the solution of quintic equations by radicals. He believed that he had solved the quintic in and submitted a paper to the Danish mathematician Ferdinand Degen, for publication by the Royal Society of Copenhagen.

Degen asked Abel to give a numerical example of his method and, while trying to provide an example, Abel discovered the mistake in his paper. Degen had given Abel some important advice that was to set him working on an area of mathematics see [ 2 ] I refer to elliptic integrals. A serious investigator with suitable qualifications for research of this kind would by no means be restricted to the many beautiful properties of these most remarkable functions, but could discover a Strait of Magellan leading into wide expanses of a tremendous analytic ocean.

At the University of Christiania Abel found a supporter in the professor of astronomy Christopher Hansteen, who provided both financial support and encouragement. Hansteen's wife began to care for Abel as if he was her own son. In Abel published papers on functional equations and integrals in a new scientific journal started up by Hansteen.

Abel niels henrik biography examples: Niels Henrik Abel (5 August –

In Abel's third paper, Solutions of some problems by means of definite integrals he gave the first solution of an integral equation. Abel was given a small grant to visit Degen and other mathematicians in Copenhagen. Returning to Christiania, Abel tried to get the University of Christiania to give him a larger grant to enable him to visit the top mathematicians in Germany and France.

He did not speak French or German so, partly to save money, he was given funds to remain in Christiania for two years to give him the chance to become fluent in these languages before travelling. Abel began working again on quintic equations and, inhe proved the impossibility of solving the general equation of the fifth degree in radicals.

He published the work in French and at his own expense since he wanted an impressive piece of work to take with him when he was on his travels. As Ayoub writes in [ 6 ] :- He chose a pamphlet as the quickest way to get it into print, and in order to save on the printing costs, he reduced the proof to fit on half a folio sheet [ six pages ].

By this time Abel seems to have known something of Ruffini 's work for he had studied Cauchy 's work of while he was an undergraduate and in this paper there is a reference to Ruffini 's work. Abel's paper begins [ 6 ] :- Geometers have occupied themselves a great deal with the general solution of algebraic equations and several among them have sought to prove the impossibility.

But, if I am not mistaken, they have not succeeded up to the present.

Abel niels henrik biography examples: Niels Henrik Abel was a Norwegian

In August Abel was given a scholarship from the Norwegian government to allow him to travel abroad and, after taking a month to settle his affairs, he set out for the Continent with four friends, first visiting mathematicians in Norway and Denmark. On reaching Copenhagen, Abel found that Degen had died and he changed his mind about taking Hansteen's advice to go directly to Paris, preferring not to travel alone and stay with his friends who were going to Berlin.

As he wrote in a later letter [ 7 ] :- Now I am so constituted that I cannot endure solitude. Alone, I am depressed, I get cantankerous, and I have little inclination to work. In Copenhagen Abel was given a letter of introduction to Crelle by one of the mathematicians there. Abel met Crelle in Berlin and the two became firm friends. This proved the most useful part of Abel's whole trip, particularly as Crelle was about to begin publishing a journal devoted to mathematical research.

While in Berlin, Abel learnt that the position of professor of mathematics at the University of Christiania, the only university in Norway, had been given to Holmboe. With no prospects of a university post in Norway, Abel began to worry about his future. Crelle's Journal continued to be a source for Abel's papers and Abel began to work to establish mathematical analysis on a rigorous basis.