Mathematician:John Horton Conway

Mathematician

British-born mathematician noted for his work in group theory and recreational mathematics.

Inventor of The Game of Life.

Not to be confused with John Bligh Conway.

https://xkcd.com/2293/

Nationality

British

History

• Born: 26 Dec 1937, Liverpool, England
• Died: 11 Apr 2020

Theorems and Definitions

• The Game of Life
• Surreal Numbers
• Free Will Theorem (with Simon Bernhard Kochen)
• Strong Free Will Theorem (with Simon Bernhard Kochen)

• Alexander-Conway Polynomial (with James Waddell Alexander II)

Results named for John Horton Conway can be found here.

Definitions of concepts named for John Horton Conway can be found here.

Publications

• 1976: On Numbers And Games
  • 2001: On Numbers And Games, 2nd ed.

• 1982: Winning Ways for your Mathematical Plays (with Elwyn Berlekamp and Richard K. Guy)
• 1996: The Book of Numbers (with Richard K. Guy)
• 1999: Sphere Packings, Lattices, and Groups, 3rd ed. (with N.J.A. Sloane)
• 2003: On Quaternions And Octonions (with Derek A. Smith)
• 2006: The Free Will Theorem (Foundations of Physics Vol. 36, no. 10: p. 1441) (with Simon B. Kochen)
• 2009: The Strong Free Will Theorem (Not. Amer. Math. Soc. Vol. 56, no. 2: pp. 226 – 232) (with Simon B. Kochen)

Notable Quotes

I do have a big ego! As I often say, modesty is my only vice. If I weren't so modest, I'd be perfect.

Sources

• John J. O'Connor and Edmund F. Robertson: "John Horton Conway": MacTutor History of Mathematics archive