Mathematician:Joseph Diez Gergonne

Mathematician

French mathematician and logician, best known for founding and editing Annales de mathématiques pures et appliquées.

Nationality

French

History

• Born: 19 June 1771 in Nancy, France
• 1816: Provided an elegant solution to the Problem of Apollonius
• Died: 4 May 1859 in Montpellier, France

Theorems and Definitions

• Gergonne Point

• Introduced the concept of duality in projective geometry
• Introduced the word polar

Publications

• 1810: Founded Annales de mathématiques pures et appliquées
• 1813: Methods of synthesis and analysis in mathematics (unpublished)
• 1815: The application of the method of least squares to the interpolation of sequences
• 1818: Essai sur la théorie des définitions ("An essay on the theory of definition")

Notable Quotes

It is not possible to feel satisfied at having said the last word about some theory as long as it cannot be explained in a few words to any passer-by encountered in the street.

Sources

• John J. O'Connor and Edmund F. Robertson: "Joseph Diez Gergonne": MacTutor History of Mathematics archive

• 1991: David Wells: Curious and Interesting Geometry ... (previous) ... (next): A Chronological List Of Mathematicians
• 1998: David Nelson: The Penguin Dictionary of Mathematics (2nd ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): Gergonne, Joseph Diez (1771-1859)
• 2008: David Nelson: The Penguin Dictionary of Mathematics (4th ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): Gergonne, Joseph Diez (1771-1859)