Carl Friedrich Gauss: ascension to the throne. Great German scientists Victor Gauss biography

The mathematician Gauss was a reserved person. Eric Temple Bell, who studied his biography, believes that if Gauss had published all his research and discoveries in full and on time, then half a dozen more mathematicians might have become famous. And so they had to spend the lion's share of time to find out how the scientist obtained this or that data. After all, he rarely published methods; he was always interested only in the result. An outstanding mathematician and an inimitable personality - this is all Carl Friedrich Gauss.

early years

The future mathematician Gauss was born on April 30, 1777. This is, of course, a strange phenomenon, but outstanding people are most often born into poor families. This happened this time too. His grandfather was an ordinary peasant, and his father worked in the Duchy of Brunswick as a gardener, mason or plumber. Parents found out that their child was a child prodigy when the baby was two years old. A year later, Karl can already count, write and read.

At school, his teacher noticed his abilities when he gave him the task of calculating the sum of numbers from 1 to 100. Gauss quickly managed to understand that all extreme numbers in a pair add up to 101, and in a matter of seconds he solved this equation by multiplying 101 by 50.

The young mathematician was incredibly lucky with his teacher. He helped him in everything, even made sure that the budding talent was paid a scholarship. With her help, Karl managed to graduate from college (1795).

Student years

After college, Gauss studied at the University of Göttingen. Biographers designate this period of life as the most fruitful. At this time, he managed to prove that it was possible to draw a regular seventeen-sided triangle using only a compass. He assures that you can draw not only a 17-sided polygon, but also other regular polygons, using only a compass and a ruler.

At the university, Gauss begins to keep a special notebook, where he writes down all the notes related to his research. Most of them were hidden from the public eye. He always repeated to his friends that he would not be able to publish a study or formula that he was not 100% sure of. For this reason, most of his ideas were discovered by other mathematicians 30 years later.

"Arithmetic Studies"

Along with graduating from university, the mathematician Gauss completed his outstanding work Arithmetic Studies (1798), but it was published only two years later.

This extensive work determined the further development of mathematics (in particular, algebra and higher arithmetic). The main part of the work is focused on describing the abiogenesis of quadratic forms. Biographers claim that it was with him that Gauss's discoveries in mathematics began. After all, he was the first mathematician who was able to calculate fractions and convert them into functions.

Also in the book you can find a complete paradigm of equalities for dividing a circle. Gauss skillfully applied this theory to try to solve the problem of drawing polygons using a ruler and compass. Proving this probability, Carl Gauss (mathematician) introduces a series of numbers called Gauss numbers (3, 5, 17, 257, 65337). This means that with the help of simple stationery objects you can build a 3-gon, 5-gon, 17-gon, etc. But it will not be possible to construct a 7-gon, because 7 is not a “Gauss number”. The mathematician also includes twos as “his” numbers, which are multiplied by any power of his series of numbers (2 3, 2 5, etc.)

This result can be called a “pure existence theorem.” As mentioned at the beginning, Gauss liked to publish final results, but never specified methods. It’s the same in this case: the mathematician claims that it is quite possible to build, but he doesn’t specify how exactly to do it.

Astronomy and the Queen of Sciences

in 1799, Karl Gauss (mathematician) received the title of Privatdozent at the University of Braunschwein. Two years later, he is given a place at the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences, where he acts as a correspondent. He still continues to study number theory, but his range of interests expands after the discovery of a small planet. Gauss is trying to calculate and indicate its exact location. Many people wonder what the name of the planet was according to the calculations of the mathematician Gauss. However, few know that Ceres is not the only planet with which the scientist worked.

In 1801, a new celestial body was discovered for the first time. It happened unexpectedly and suddenly, just as unexpectedly the planet was lost. Gauss tried to discover it using mathematical methods, and, oddly enough, it was exactly where the scientist pointed.

The scientist has been studying astronomy for more than two decades. The method of Gauss (the mathematician responsible for many discoveries) for determining the orbit using three observations is gaining worldwide fame. The three observations are where the planet is located at different times. Using these indicators, Ceres was rediscovered. Another planet was discovered in exactly the same way. Since 1802, when asked what the name of the planet discovered by the mathematician Gauss was, one could answer: “Pallada.” Looking ahead a little, it is worth noting that in 1923 a large asteroid orbiting Mars was named after the famous mathematician. Gaussia, or asteroid 1001, is the officially recognized planet of the mathematician Gauss.

These were the first studies in the field of astronomy. Perhaps contemplation of the starry sky was the reason why a person, passionate about numbers, decides to start a family. In 1805 he married Johanna Osthoff. In this union, the couple has three children, but the youngest son dies in infancy.

In 1806, the Duke, who patronized the mathematician, died. European countries are vying with each other to invite Gauss to their countries. From 1807 until his last days, Gauss headed the department at the University of Göttingen.

In 1809, the mathematician’s first wife died, and in the same year Gauss published his new creation - a book called “The Paradigm of the Movement of Celestial Bodies.” The methods for calculating the orbits of planets that are set out in this work are still relevant today (albeit with minor amendments).

Main theorem of algebra

Germany met the beginning of the 19th century in a state of anarchy and decline. These years were difficult for the mathematician, but he continues to live on. In 1810, Gauss tied the knot for the second time - with Minna Waldeck. In this union he has three more children: Therese, Wilhelm and Eugen. Also, 1810 was marked by the receipt of a prestigious prize and gold medal.

Gauss continues his work in the fields of astronomy and mathematics, exploring more and more unknown components of these sciences. His first publication, devoted to the fundamental theorem of algebra, dates back to 1815. The main idea is this: the number of roots of a polynomial is directly proportional to its degree. Later, the statement took on a slightly different form: any number to a power not equal to zero a priori has at least one root.

He first proved this back in 1799, but was not satisfied with his work, so the publication was published 16 years later, with some amendments, additions and calculations.

Non-Euclidean theory

According to data, in 1818, Gauss was the first to construct a basis for non-Euclidean geometry, the theorems of which would be possible in reality. Non-Euclidean geometry is a branch of science distinct from Euclidean geometry. The main feature of Euclidean geometry is the presence of axioms and theorems that do not require confirmation. In his book Elements, Euclid made statements that must be accepted without proof, because they cannot be changed. Gauss was the first to prove that Euclid's theories cannot always be accepted without justification, since in certain cases they do not have a solid basis of evidence that satisfies all the requirements of experiment. This is how non-Euclidean geometry appeared. Of course, the basic geometric systems were discovered by Lobachevsky and Riemann, but the method of Gauss - a mathematician who knew how to look deep and find the truth - laid the foundation for this branch of geometry.

Geodesy

In 1818, the Hanoverian government decided that there was a need to measure the kingdom, and Karl Friedrich Gauss received this task. Discoveries in mathematics did not end there, but only acquired a new shade. He develops the computational combinations necessary to complete the task. These included the Gaussian “small squares” technique, which raised geodesy to a new level.

He had to draw maps and organize surveys of the area. This allowed him to acquire new knowledge and carry out new experiments, so in 1821 he began writing a work on geodesy. This work of Gauss was published in 1827, under the title “General Analysis of Uneven Planes.” This work was based on ambushes of internal geometry. The mathematician believed that it was necessary to consider objects that are on the surface as properties of the surface itself, paying attention to the length of the curves, while ignoring the data of the surrounding space. Somewhat later, this theory was supplemented by the works of B. Riemann and A. Alexandrov.

Thanks to this work, the concept of “Gaussian curvature” began to appear in scientific circles (determines the measure of curvature of a plane at a certain point). Differential geometry begins to exist. And so that the results of observations are reliable, Carl Friedrich Gauss (mathematician) develops new methods for obtaining values ​​with a high level of probability.

Mechanics

In 1824, Gauss was included in absentia as a member of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences. His achievements do not end there; he still persistently studies mathematics and presents a new discovery: “Gaussian integers.” They mean numbers that have an imaginary and a real part, which are integers. In fact, in their properties, Gaussian numbers resemble ordinary integers, but those small distinctive characteristics allow us to prove the biquadratic reciprocity law.

At any time he was inimitable. Gauss, a mathematician whose discoveries are so closely intertwined with life, made new adjustments even to mechanics in 1829. At this time, his small work “On the New Universal Principle of Mechanics” was published. In it, Gauss argues that the principle of small impact can rightfully be considered a new paradigm of mechanics. The scientist assures that this principle can be applied to all mechanical systems that are interconnected.

Physics

From 1831, Gauss began to suffer from severe insomnia. The disease appeared after the death of his second wife. He seeks solace in new explorations and acquaintances. Thus, thanks to his invitation, W. Weber came to Gottingen. Gauss quickly finds a common language with a young talented person. They are both passionate about science, and their thirst for knowledge has to be quenched by exchanging their findings, guesses and experiences. These enthusiasts quickly get to work devoting their time to the study of electromagnetism.

Gauss, a mathematician whose biography is of great scientific value, in 1832 created the absolute units that are still used in physics today. He identified three main positions: time, weight and distance (length). Along with this discovery, in 1833, thanks to joint research with the physicist Weber, Gauss managed to invent the electromagnetic telegraph.

The year 1839 was marked by the publication of another essay - “On the general abiogenesis of the forces of gravity and repulsion that act directly proportional to distance.” The pages describe in detail the famous Gauss law (also known as the Gauss-Ostrogradsky theorem, or simply This law is one of the fundamental ones in electrodynamics. It defines the relationship between the electric flux and the sum of the surface charge, divided by the electric constant.

In the same year, Gauss mastered the Russian language. He sends letters to St. Petersburg with a request to send him Russian books and magazines; he especially wanted to familiarize himself with the work “The Captain's Daughter.” This biographical fact proves that, in addition to his ability to calculate, Gauss had many other interests and hobbies.

Just a man

Gauss was never in a hurry to publish. He spent a long time and painstakingly checking each of his works. For a mathematician, everything mattered: from the correctness of the formula to the grace and simplicity of the style. He liked to say that his work was like a newly built house. The owner is shown only the final result of the work, and not the remains of the forest that used to be on the site of the living space. The same with his works: Gauss was sure that no one should show rough drafts of research, only ready-made data, theories, formulas.

Gauss always showed a keen interest in the sciences, but he was especially interested in mathematics, which he considered “the queen of all sciences.” And nature did not deprive him of intelligence and talents. Even in his old age, he, as was his custom, carried out most of the complex calculations in his head. The mathematician never talked about his work in advance. Like every person, he was afraid that his contemporaries would not understand him. In one of his letters, Karl says that he is tired of always balancing on the brink: on the one hand, he will gladly support science, but, on the other, he did not want to stir up “the hornet’s nest of the dull.”

Gauss spent his entire life in Göttingen, only once he managed to visit Berlin at a scientific conference. He could carry out research, experiments, calculations or measurements for a long time, but he really did not like to lecture. He considered this process only an annoying necessity, but if talented students appeared in his group, he spared neither time nor effort for them and for many years maintained a correspondence discussing important scientific issues.

Carl Friedrich Gauss, mathematician, whose photo is posted in this article, was a truly amazing person. He could boast of outstanding knowledge not only in the field of mathematics, but was also “friendly” with foreign languages. He spoke Latin, English and French fluently, and even mastered Russian. The mathematician read not only scientific memoirs, but also ordinary fiction. He especially liked the works of Dickens, Swift and Walter Scott. After his younger sons emigrated to the United States, Gauss began to become interested in American writers. Over time, he became addicted to Danish, Swedish, Italian and Spanish books. The mathematician always read all works in the original.

Gauss took a very conservative position in public life. From an early age, he felt dependent on people in power. Even when in 1837 a protest began at the university against the king, who was cutting professors’ salaries, Karl did not interfere.

Last years

In 1849, Gauss celebrated the 50th anniversary of his doctorate. They came to see him and this pleased him much more than receiving another award. In the last years of his life, Carl Gauss was already ill a lot. It was difficult for the mathematician to move, but the clarity and sharpness of his mind did not suffer from this.

Shortly before his death, Gauss's health deteriorated. Doctors diagnosed heart disease and nervous strain. Medicines practically did not help.

The mathematician Gauss died on February 23, 1855, at the age of seventy-eight. buried in Göttingen and, in accordance with his last will, a regular 17-sided triangle was engraved on the tombstone. Later, his portraits will be printed on postage stamps and banknotes, and the country will forever remember its best thinker.

This is how Carl Friedrich Gauss was - strange, smart and passionate. And if they ask what the name of the planet of the mathematician Gauss is, you can slowly answer: “Calculations!”, After all, he devoted his entire life to it.

(1777-1855) German mathematician and astronomer

Carl Friedrich Gauss was born on April 30, 1777 in Germany, in the city of Brunswick, into the family of a craftsman. The father, Gerhard Diederich Gauss, had many different professions, since due to lack of money he had to do everything from installing fountains to gardening. Karl's mother, Dorothea, was also from a simple family of stonemasons. She was distinguished by her cheerful character, she was an intelligent, cheerful and determined woman, she loved her only son and was proud of him.

As a child, Gauss learned to count very early. One summer, his father took three-year-old Karl to work in a quarry. When the workers finished work, Gerhard, Karl's father, began to make payments to each worker. After tedious calculations, which took into account the number of hours, output, working conditions, etc., the father read out a statement from which it followed who was owed how much. And suddenly little Karl said that the count was incorrect, that there was a mistake. They checked, and the boy was right. They began to say that little Gauss learned to count before he spoke.

When Karl was 7 years old, he was assigned to the Catherine School, which was headed by Büttner. He immediately paid attention to the boy who solved the examples the fastest. At school, Gauss met and became friends with a young man, Buettner's assistant, whose name was Johann Martin Christian Bartels. Together with Bartels, 10-year-old Gauss took up mathematical transformation and the study of classical works. Thanks to Bartels, Duke Karl Wilhelm Ferdinand and the nobles of Brunswick drew attention to the young talent. Johann Martin Christian Bartels subsequently studied at Helmstedt and Göttingen universities, and subsequently came to Russia and was a professor at Kazan University, Nikolai Ivanovich Lobachevsky listened to his lectures.

Meanwhile, Karl Gauss entered the Catherine Gymnasium in 1788. The poor boy would never have been able to study at the gymnasium, and then at the university, without the help and patronage of the Duke of Brunswick, to whom Gauss was devoted and grateful throughout his life. The Duke always remembered the shy young man of extraordinary abilities. Karl Wilhelm Ferdinand provided the necessary funds to continue the young man’s education at the Karolinska College, which prepared him for entering the university.

In 1795, Karl Gauss entered the University of Göttingen to study. Among the young mathematician's university friends was Farkas Bolyai, the father of János Bolyai, the great Hungarian mathematician. In 1798 he graduated from the university and returned to his homeland.

In his native Braunschweig, for ten years, Gauss experienced a kind of “Boldino autumn” - a period of ebullient creativity and great discoveries. The area of ​​mathematics in which he works is called the “three great As”: arithmetic, algebra and analysis.

It all started with the art of counting. Gauss counts constantly, he performs calculations with decimal numbers with an incredible number of decimal places. Over the course of his life, he becomes a virtuoso in numerical calculations. Gauss accumulates information about various sums of numbers, calculations of infinite series. It's like a game where the genius of a scientist comes up with hypotheses and discoveries. He is like a brilliant prospector, he feels when his pickaxe hits a gold nugget.

Gauss compiles tables of reciprocals. He decided to trace how the period of the decimal fraction changes depending on the natural number p.

He proved that a regular 17-gon can be constructed using a compass and ruler, i.e. that the equation is:

or equation

solvable in quadratic radicals.

He gave a complete solution to the problem of constructing regular heptagons and ninegons. Scientists have been working on this problem for 2000 years.

Gauss begins to keep a diary. Reading it, we see how a fascinating mathematical action begins to unfold, the scientist’s masterpiece, his “Arithmetic Studies,” is born.

He proved the fundamental theorem of algebra, in number theory he proved the law of reciprocity, which was discovered by the great Leonhard Euler, but he could not prove it. Carl Gauss deals with the theory of surfaces in geometry, from which it follows that geometry is constructed on any surface, and not just on a plane, as in Euclidean planimetry or spherical geometry. He managed to construct lines on the surface that play the role of straight lines, and was able to measure distances on the surface.

Applied astronomy is firmly within the scope of his scientific interests. This is an experimental and mathematical work consisting of observations, studies of experimental points, mathematical methods for processing observation results, and numerical calculations. Gauss's interest in practical astronomy was known, and he did not trust anyone with tedious calculations.

The discovery of the small planet Ceres brought him fame as the most famous astronomer in Europe. And it was like this. First, D. Piazzi discovered a small planet and named it Ceres. But he was unable to determine its exact location, since the celestial body was hidden behind dense clouds. Gauss, at the tip of his pen, rediscovered Ceres at his desk. He calculated the orbit of the small planet and, in a letter to Piazzi, indicated where and when Ceres could be observed. When astronomers pointed their telescopes at the indicated point, they saw Ceres, which reappeared. There was no end to their amazement.

The young scientist is tipped to become the director of the Göttingen Observatory. The following was written about him: “Gauss’s fame is well deserved, and the young 25-year-old man is already ahead of all modern mathematicians...”.

On November 22, 1804, Karl Gauss married Joanna Osthoff from Brunswick. He wrote to his friend Bolyai: “Life seems to me like an eternal spring with all new bright flowers.” He is happy, but it doesn't last long. Five years later, Joanna dies after the birth of her third child, son Louis, who, in turn, did not live long, only six months. Karl Gauss is left alone with two children - son Joseph and daughter Minna. And then another misfortune happened: the Duke of Brunswick, an influential friend and patron, suddenly died. The Duke died from wounds received in battles, which he lost, at Auerstedt and Jena.

Meanwhile, the scientist is invited by the University of Göttingen. Thirty-year-old Gauss received the chair of mathematics and astronomy, and then the post of director of the Göttingen Astronomical Observatory, which he held until the end of his life.

On August 4, 1810, he married the beloved friend of his late wife, the daughter of the Göttingen councilor Wal-dec. Her name was Minna, she gave birth to Gauss a daughter and two sons. At home, Karl was a strict conservative who did not tolerate any innovations. He had an iron character, and his outstanding abilities and genius were combined with truly childish modesty. He was deeply religious and firmly believed in an afterlife. Throughout his life as a scientist, the furnishings of his small office spoke of the unpretentious tastes of its owner: a small desk, a desk painted with white oil paint, a narrow sofa and a single armchair. The candle burns dimly, the temperature in the room is very moderate. This is the abode of the “king of mathematicians,” as Gauss was called, the “Göttingen colossus.”

The scientist’s creative personality has a very strong humanitarian component: he is interested in languages, history, philosophy and politics. He learned the Russian language, in letters to friends in St. Petersburg he asked to send him books and magazines in Russian and even Pushkin’s “The Captain’s Daughter.”

Karl Gauss was offered to take a chair at the Berlin Academy of Sciences, but he was so overwhelmed by his personal life and its problems (after all, he had just become engaged to his second wife) that he refused the tempting offer. After only a short stay in Göttingen, Gauss formed a circle of students; they idolized their teacher, worshiped him, and subsequently became famous scientists themselves. These are Schumacher, Gerlin, Nicolai, Möbius, Struve and Encke. The friendship arose in the field of applied astronomy. They all become directors of observatories.

Karl Gauss's work at the university was, of course, related to teaching. Oddly enough, his attitude towards this activity is very, very negative. He believed that this was a waste of time, which was taken away from scientific work and research. However, everyone noted the high quality of his lectures and their scientific value. And since by nature Karl Gauss was a kind, sympathetic and attentive person, the students paid him with respect and love.

His studies in dioptrics and practical astronomy led him to practical applications, particularly how to improve the telescope. He carried out the necessary calculations, but no one paid attention to them. Half a century passed, and Steingel used the calculations and formulas of Gauss and created an improved telescope design.

In 1816, a new observatory was built and Gauss moved into a new apartment as director of the Göttingen Observatory. Now the manager has important concerns - he needs to replace instruments that have long been obsolete, especially telescopes. Gauss ordered the famous masters Reichenbach, Frauenhofer, Utzschneider and Ertel two new meridian instruments, which were ready in 1819 and 1821. The Gottingen Observatory, under the leadership of Gauss, begins to make the most accurate measurements.

The scientist invented the heliotron. This is a simple and cheap device, consisting of a telescope and two flat mirrors, placed normally. They say that everything ingenious is simple, and this also applies to the heliotron. The device turned out to be absolutely necessary for geodetic measurements.

Gauss calculates the effect of gravity on the surfaces of planets. It turns out that only very small creatures can live on the Sun, since the force of gravity there is 28 times greater than that on Earth.

In physics, he is interested in magnetism and electricity. In 1833, the electromagnetic telegraph invented by him was demonstrated. It was the prototype of the modern telegraph. The conductor through which the signal passed was made of iron 2 or 3 millimeters thick. On this first telegraph, individual words were first transmitted, and then entire phrases. Public interest in Gauss's electromagnetic telegraph was very great. The Duke of Cambridge specially came to Göttingen to meet him.

“If there were money,” Gauss wrote to Schumacher, “then electromagnetic telegraphy could be brought to such perfection and to such dimensions that the imagination is simply horrified.” After successful experiments in Göttingen, the Saxon Minister of State Lindenau invited Leipzig professor Ernst Heinrich Weber, who together with Gauss demonstrated the telegraph, to present a report on “the construction of an electromagnetic telegraph between Dresden and Leipzig.” Ernst Heinrich Weber's report contained prophetic words: “...if the earth is ever covered with a network of railways with telegraph lines, it will resemble the nervous system in the human body...”. Weber took an active part in the project, made many improvements, and the first Gauss-Weber telegraph lasted ten years, until on December 16, 1845, after a strong lightning strike, most of its wire line burned out. The remaining piece of wire became a museum exhibit and is stored in Göttingen.

Gauss and Weber conducted famous experiments in the field of magnetic and electrical units and the measurement of magnetic fields. The results of their research formed the basis of the theory of potential, the basis of the modern theory of errors.

While Gauss was studying crystallography, he invented a device that could be used to measure the angles of a crystal with high precision using a 12-inch Reichenbach theodolite, and he also invented a new way to designate crystals.

An interesting page of his heritage is connected with the foundations of geometry. They said that the great Gauss studied the theory of parallel lines and came to a new, completely different geometry. Gradually, a group of mathematicians formed around him and exchanged ideas in this area. It all started with the fact that young Gauss, like other mathematicians, tried to prove the parallel theorem based on axioms. Having rejected all pseudo-evidence, he realized that nothing could be created along this path. The non-Euclidean hypothesis frightened him. These thoughts cannot be published - the scientist would be anathematized. But the thought cannot be stopped, and Gaussian non-Euclidean geometry - here it is in front of us, in the diaries. This is his secret, hidden from the general public, but known to his closest friends, since mathematicians have a tradition of correspondence, a tradition of exchanging thoughts and ideas.

Farkas Bolyai, a professor of mathematics, a friend of Gauss, while raising his son Janos, a talented mathematician, persuaded him not to study the theory of parallels in geometry, saying that this topic was cursed in mathematics and, except for misfortune, it would bring nothing. And what Karl Gauss did not say was later said by Lobachevsky and Bolyai. Therefore, absolute non-Euclidean geometry is named after them.

Over the years, Gauss's reluctance to teach and lecture disappears. By this time, he is surrounded by students and friends. On July 16, 1849, the fiftieth anniversary of Gauss receiving his doctorate was celebrated in Göttingen. Numerous students and admirers, colleagues and friends gathered. He was awarded diplomas of honorary citizen of Göttingen and Braunschweig, orders of various states. A gala dinner took place, at which he said that in Göttingen there are all conditions for the development of talent, they help here in everyday difficulties, and in science, and also that “... banal phrases have never had power in Göttingen.”

Carl Gauss has aged. Now he works less intensively, but his range of activities is still wide: convergence of series, practical astronomy, physics.

The winter of 1852 was very difficult for him, his health deteriorated sharply. He never went to doctors because he did not trust medical science. His friend, Professor Baum, examined the scientist and said that the situation was very serious and it was associated with heart failure. The health of the great mathematician steadily deteriorated, he stopped walking and died on February 23, 1855.

Contemporaries of Karl Gauss felt the superiority of genius. The medal, minted in 1855, is engraved: Mathematicorum princeps (Princeps of Mathematicians). In astronomy, the memory of him remains in the name of one of the fundamental constants, a system of units, a theorem, a principle, formulas - all of this bears the name of Karl Gauss.

The famous European scientist Johann Carl Friedrich Gauss is considered to be the greatest mathematician of all times. Despite the fact that Gauss himself came from the poorest strata of society: his father was a plumber and his grandfather was a peasant, fate destined him for great glory. The boy already at the age of three showed himself to be a child prodigy; he could count, write, read, and even helped his father in his work.


The young talent, of course, was noticed. His curiosity was inherited from his uncle, his mother's brother. Carl Gauss, the son of a poor German, not only received a college education, but already at the age of 19 was considered the best European mathematician of that time.

1. Gauss himself claimed that he began to count before he spoke.
2. The great mathematician had a well-developed auditory perception: once, at the age of 3, he identified by ear an error in the calculations performed by his father when he was calculating the earnings of his assistants.
3. Gauss spent quite a short time in the first class, he was very quickly transferred to the second. The teachers immediately recognized him as a talented student.
4. Karl Gauss found it quite easy not only to study numbers, but also to study linguistics. He could speak several languages ​​fluently. For quite a long time at a young age, the mathematician could not decide which academic path he should choose: exact sciences or philology. Ultimately choosing mathematics as his hobby, Gauss later wrote his works in Latin, English, and German.
5. At the age of 62, Gauss began to actively study the Russian language. Having become familiar with the works of the great Russian mathematician Nikolai Lobachevsky, he wanted to read them in the original. Contemporaries noted the fact that Gauss, having become famous, never read the works of other mathematicians: he usually became familiar with the concept and himself tried to either prove or disprove it. Lobachevsky's work was an exception.
6. While studying in college, Gauss was interested in the works of Newton, Lagrange, Euler and other other outstanding scientists.
7. The most fruitful period in the life of the great European mathematician is considered to be his time in college, where he created the law of reciprocity of quadratic residues and the method of least squares, and also began work on the study of the normal distribution of errors.
8. After his studies, Gauss went to live in Brunswick, where he was awarded a scholarship. There, the mathematician began work on proving the fundamental theorem of algebra.
9. Karl Gauss was a corresponding member of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences. He received this honorary title after he discovered the location of the small planet Ceres, making a series of complex mathematical calculations. Calculating the trajectory of Ceres mathematically made the name of Gauss known to the entire scientific world.
10. The image of Karl Gauss appears on the German 10 mark banknote.
11. The name of the great European mathematician is marked on the Earth’s satellite – the Moon.
12. Gauss developed an absolute system of units: he took 1 gram as a unit of mass, 1 second as a unit of time, and 1 millimeter as a unit of length.
13. Carl Gauss is famous for his research not only in algebra, but also in physics, geometry, geodesy and astronomy.
14. In 1836, together with his friend physicist Wilhelm Weber, Gauss created a society for the study of magnetism.
15. Gauss was very afraid of criticism and misunderstanding from his contemporaries directed at him.
16. There is an opinion among ufologists that the very first person to propose establishing contact with extraterrestrial civilizations was the great German mathematician Carl Gauss. He expressed his point of view, according to which it was necessary to cut down an area in the shape of a triangle in the Siberian forests and sow it with wheat. The aliens, seeing such an unusual field in the form of a neat geometric figure, should have understood that intelligent beings live on planet Earth. But it is not known for certain whether Gauss actually made such a statement, or whether this story is someone’s invention.
17. In 1832, Gauss developed the design of an electric telegraph, which he later refined and improved together with Wilhelm Weber.
18. The great European mathematician was married twice. He outlived his wives, and they, in turn, left him 6 children.
19. Gauss conducted research in the field of optoelectronics and electrostatics.

Gauss - the king of mathematics

The life of young Karl was influenced by his mother’s desire to make him not a rude and uncouth person like his father was, but intelligent and versatile personality. She sincerely rejoiced at her son's success and idolized him until the end of her life.

Many scientists considered Gauss not to be the mathematical king of Europe; he was called the king of the world for all the research, works, hypotheses, and proofs created by him.

In the last years of the life of the mathematical genius, pundits gave him glory and honor, but, despite his popularity and world fame, Gauss never found full happiness. However, according to the memoirs of his contemporaries, the great mathematician appears as a positive, friendly and cheerful person.

Gauss worked almost until his death - 1855. Until his death, this talented man retained clarity of mind, a youthful thirst for knowledge and at the same time boundless curiosity.

German mathematician, astronomer and physicist, participated in the creation of Germany's first electromagnetic telegraph. Until his old age, he got used to doing most of the calculations in his head...

According to family legend, he is already in 3 for years he knew how to read, write, and even corrected his father’s calculation errors in the payroll for workers (my father worked either at a construction site or as a gardener...).

“At the age of eighteen, he made an amazing discovery concerning the properties of the 17-sided triangle; this has not happened in mathematics for 2000 years since the ancient Greeks (this success was decided by the choice of Karl Gauss: what to study next: languages ​​or mathematics in favor of mathematics - Note by I.L. Vikentyev). His doctoral dissertation on the topic “A new proof that every entire rational function of one variable can be represented by the product of real numbers of the first and second degrees” is devoted to solving the fundamental theorem of algebra. The theorem itself was known before, but he proposed a completely new proof. Glory Gauss was so great that when French troops approached Göttingen in 1807, Napoleon ordered to take care of the city in which “the greatest mathematician of all time” lives. This was very kind of Napoleon, but fame also has a downside. When the victors imposed an indemnity on Germany, they demanded from Gauss 2000 francs This corresponded to approximately 5,000 today's dollars - quite a large sum for a university professor. Friends offered help Gauss refused; while the bickering was going on, it turned out that the money had already been paid by the famous French mathematician Maurice Pierre de Laplace(1749-1827). Laplace explained his action by saying that he considered Gauss, who was 29 years younger than him, “the greatest mathematician in the world,” that is, he rated him slightly lower than Napoleon. Later, an anonymous admirer sent Gauss 1,000 francs to help him pay off Laplace.”

Peter Bernstein, Against the Gods: Taming Risk, M., Olympus Business, 2006, p. 154.

10 year old Karl Gauss very lucky to have an assistant math teacher - Martin Bartels(he was 17 years old at the time). He not only appreciated the talent of young Gauss, but managed to get him a scholarship from the Duke of Brunswick to enter the prestigious school Collegium Carolinum. Later Martin Bartels was a teacher and N.I. Lobachevsky…

“By 1807, Gauss had developed a theory of errors (errors), and astronomers began to use it. Although all modern physical measurements require errors to be specified, outside of astronomy physics Not error estimates were reported up until the 1890s (or even later).”

Ian Hacking, Representation and Intervention. Introduction to the philosophy of natural sciences, M., “Logos”, 1998, p. 242.

“In recent decades, among the problems of the foundations of physics, the problem of physical space has acquired particular importance. Research Gauss(1816), Bolyai (1823), Lobachevsky(1835) and others led to non-Euclidean geometry, to the realization that the classical geometric system of Euclid, which has so far reigned supreme, is only one of an infinite number of logically equal systems. Thus, the question arose which of these geometries is the geometry of real space.
Gauss also wanted to solve this issue by measuring the sum of the angles of a large triangle. Thus, physical geometry turned into an empirical science, a branch of physics. These problems were further considered in particular Riemann (1868), Helmholtz(1868) and Poincare (1904). Poincare emphasized, in particular, the relationship between physical geometry and all other branches of physics: the question of the nature of real space can only be resolved within the framework of some general system of physics.
Then Einstein found a general system within which this question was answered, an answer in the spirit of a specific non-Euclidean system.”

Rudolf Carnap, Hans Hahn, Otto Neurath, Scientific worldview - Vienna circle, in Collection: Journal “Erkenntnis” (“Knowledge”). Favorites / Ed. O.A. Nazarova, M., “Territory of the Future”, 2006, p. 70.

In 1832 Carl Gauss“... built a system of units in which three arbitrary, independent from each other basic units were taken as a basis: length (millimeter), mass (milligram) and time (second). All other (derived) units could be defined using these three. Subsequently, with the development of science and technology, other systems of units of physical quantities appeared, built according to the principle proposed by Gauss. They were based on the metric system of measures, but differed from each other in basic units. The issue of ensuring uniformity in the measurement of quantities reflecting certain phenomena of the material world has always been very important. The lack of such uniformity gave rise to significant difficulties for scientific knowledge. For example, until the 80s of the 19th century there was no unity in the measurement of electrical quantities: 15 different units of electrical resistance, 8 units of electromotive force, 5 units of electric current, etc. were used. The current situation made it very difficult to compare the results of measurements and calculations performed by various researchers.”

Golubintsev V.O., Dantsev A.A., Lyubchenko B.S., Philosophy of Science, Rostov-on-Don, “Phoenix”, 2007, p. 390-391.

« Carl Gauss, like Isaac Newton, often Not published scientific results. But all the published works of Carl Gauss contain significant results - there are no crude or pass-through works among them.

“Here it is necessary to distinguish the research method itself from the presentation and publication of its results. Let's take as an example three great, one might say brilliant, mathematicians: Gauss, Euler And Cauchy. Gauss, before publishing any work, subjected his presentation to the most careful processing, exerting extreme care for the brevity of the presentation, the elegance of methods and language, without leaving at the same time, traces of the rough work that he achieved before these methods. He used to say that when a building is built, they do not leave the scaffolding that served for the construction; therefore, he not only was in no hurry to publish his works, but left them to mature not just for years, but for decades, often returning to this work from time to time in order to bring it to perfection. […] He did not bother to publish his studies on elliptic functions, the main properties of which he discovered 34 years before Abel and Jacobi, for 61 years, and they were published in his “Heritage” approximately another 60 years after his death. Euler did exactly the opposite of Gauss. Not only did he not dismantle the scaffolding around his building, but sometimes he even seemed to clutter it up with them. But he shows all the details of the very method of his work, which is so carefully hidden in Gauss. Euler did not bother with finishing; he worked straight away and published it as the work turned out; but he was far ahead of the Academy's printed media, so that he himself said that academic publications would have enough of his works for 40 years after his death; but here he was wrong - they lasted more than 80 years. Cauchy He wrote so many works, both excellent and hasty, that neither the Paris Academy nor the mathematical journals of that time could contain them, and he founded his own mathematical journal, in which he published only his works. Gauss put it this way about the most hasty of them: “Cauchy suffers from mathematical diarrhea.” It is not known whether Cauchy said in retaliation that Gauss suffered from mathematical constipation?

Krylov A.N., My memories, L., “Shipbuilding”, 1979, p. 331.

«… Gauss was a very reserved person and led a reclusive lifestyle. He Not published a lot of his discoveries, and many of them were re-done by other mathematicians. In his publications, he paid more attention to the results, without attaching much importance to the methods for obtaining them and often forcing other mathematicians to spend a lot of effort on proving his conclusions. Eric Temple Bell, one of the biographers Gauss, believes that his unsociability delayed the development of mathematics for at least fifty years; half a dozen mathematicians could have become famous if they had obtained the results that had been kept in his archive for years, or even decades.”

Peter Bernstein, Against the Gods: Taming Risk, M., Olympus Business, 2006, p.156.

Carl Friedrich Gauss(German: Carl Friedrich Gauß) - an outstanding German mathematician, astronomer and physicist, considered one of the greatest mathematicians of all time.

Carl Friedrich Gauss was born on April 30, 1777. in the Duchy of Brunswick. Gauss's grandfather was a poor peasant, his father was a gardener, mason, and canal caretaker. Gauss showed extraordinary aptitude for mathematics at an early age.. One day, while doing his father's calculations, his three-year-old son noticed an error in the calculations. The calculation was checked, and the number indicated by the boy was correct. Little Karl was lucky with his teacher: M. Bartels appreciated the exceptional talent of young Gauss and managed to get him a scholarship from the Duke of Brunswick.

This helped Gauss graduate from college, where he studied Newton, Euler, and Lagrange. Already there, Gaus made several discoveries in higher mathematics, including proving the law of reciprocity of quadratic residues. Legendre, however, discovered this most important law earlier, but failed to strictly prove it, and Euler also failed to do so.

From 1795 to 1798, Gauss studied at the University of Göttingen. This is the most fruitful period in Gauss's life. In 1796, Carl Friedrich Gauss proved the possibility of constructing a regular 17-gon using a compass and ruler. Moreover, he solved the problem of constructing regular polygons to the end and found a criterion for the possibility of constructing a regular n-gon using a compass and ruler: if n is a prime number, then it must be of the form n=2^(2^k)+1 (the number Farm). Gauss treasured this discovery very much and bequeathed that a regular 17-gon inscribed in a circle should be depicted on his grave.

On March 30, 1796, the day when the regular 17-gon was built, Gauss's diary begins - a chronicle of his remarkable discoveries. The next entry in the diary appeared on April 8. It reported on the proof of the quadratic reciprocity theorem, which he called the “golden” theorem. Gauss made two discoveries in just ten days, a month before he turned 19 years old.

Since 1799, Gauss has been a privatdozent at the University of Braunschweig. The Duke continued to patronize the young genius. He paid for the publication of his doctoral dissertation (1799) and awarded him a good scholarship. After 1801, Gauss, without breaking with number theory, expanded his range of interests to include the natural sciences.

Carl Gauss gained worldwide fame after developing a method for calculating the elliptical orbit of a planet. according to three observations. The application of this method to the minor planet Ceres made it possible to find it again in the sky after it had been lost.

On the night of December 31 to January 1, the famous German astronomer Olbers, using data from Gauss, discovered a planet called Ceres. In March 1802, another similar planet, Pallas, was discovered, and Gauss immediately calculated its orbit.

Karl Gauss outlined his methods for calculating orbits in his famous Theories of the motion of celestial bodies(lat. Theoria motus corporum coelestium, 1809). The book describes the least squares method he used, which to this day remains one of the most common methods for processing experimental data.

In 1806, his generous patron, the Duke of Brunswick, died from a wound received in the war with Napoleon. Several countries vied with each other to invite Gauss to serve. On the recommendation of Alexander von Humboldt, Gauss was appointed professor in Göttingen and director of the Göttingen Observatory. He held this position until his death.

The name of Gauss is associated with fundamental research in almost all the main areas of mathematics: algebra, mathematical analysis, theory of functions of a complex variable, differential and non-Euclidean geometry, probability theory, as well as in astronomy, geodesy and mechanics.

Published in 1809 Gauss's new masterpiece - "The Theory of the Motion of Celestial Bodies", where the canonical theory of taking into account orbital perturbations is outlined.

In 1810, Gauss received the Prize of the Paris Academy of Sciences and the Gold Medal of the Royal Society of London, was elected to several academies. The famous comet of 1812 was observed everywhere using Gauss's calculations. In 1828, Gauss's main geometric memoir, General Studies on Curved Surfaces, was published. The memoir is devoted to the internal geometry of a surface, that is, to what is associated with the structure of this surface itself, and not with its position in space.

Research in the field of physics, which Gauss was engaged in since the early 1830s, belongs to different branches of this science. In 1832 he created an absolute system of measures, introducing three basic units: 1 sec, 1 mm and 1 kg. In 1833, together with W. Weber, he built the first electromagnetic telegraph in Germany, connecting the observatory and the physical institute in Göttingen, carried out extensive experimental work on terrestrial magnetism, invented a unipolar magnetometer, and then a bifilar one (also together with W. Weber), created the foundations of potential theory , in particular, formulated the fundamental theorem of electrostatics (the Gauss–Ostrogradsky theorem). In 1840 he developed the theory of constructing images in complex optical systems. In 1835 he created a magnetic observatory at the Göttingen Astronomical Observatory.

In every scientific field, his depth of penetration into the material, the courage of his thought and the significance of the result were amazing. Gauss was called the “king of mathematicians.” He discovered the ring of complex Gaussian integers, created a theory of divisibility for them, and with their help solved many algebraic problems.

Gauss died on February 23, 1855 in Göttingen. Contemporaries remember Gauss as a cheerful, friendly person with an excellent sense of humor. The following names were named in honor of Gauss: a crater on the Moon, minor planet No. 1001 (Gaussia), a unit of measurement of magnetic induction in the GHS system, and the Gaussberg volcano in Antarctica.