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Johann Carl Friedrich Gauss (German: Gauß [kaʁl ˈfʁiːdʁɪç ˈɡaʊs] ⓘ; [2] [3] Latin: Carolus Fridericus Gauss; 30 April 1777 – 23 February 1855) was a German mathematician, astronomer, geodesist, and physicist who contributed to many fields in mathematics and science. He ranks among history's most influential mathematicians and has ...
- Mathematics and sciences
2 days ago · Carl Friedrich Gauss (born April 30, 1777, Brunswick [Germany]—died February 23, 1855, Göttingen, Hanover) was a German mathematician, generally regarded as one of the greatest mathematicians of all time for his contributions to number theory, geometry, probability theory, geodesy, planetary astronomy, the theory of functions, and potential ...
- Why is Carl Friedrich Gauss famous?Gauss is generally regarded as one of the greatest mathematicians of all time for his contributions to number theory, geometry, probability theory,...
- What was Carl Friedrich Gauss’s childhood like?Gauss was the only child of poor parents. He was a calculating prodigy with a gift for languages. His teachers and his devoted mother recommended h...
- What awards did Carl Friedrich Gauss win?Gauss won the Copley Medal, the most prestigious scientific award in the United Kingdom, given annually by the Royal Society of London, in 1838 “fo...
- How was Carl Friedrich Gauss influential?Gauss wrote the first systematic textbook on algebraic number theory and rediscovered the asteroid Ceres. He published works on number theory, the...
- Construction of The Heptadecagon
- The Most Remarkable Diary in Mathematics
- Number Theory
- Disquisitiones Arithmeticae – Investigations in Arithmetic
- Discovery of The Dwarf Planet Ceres
- The Professor Who Shunned Teaching
- Astronomy, Mathematics, and Physics
- Inventing The Heliotrope
- Arguing with Stupid People Is A Waste of Time
- Electricity and Magnetism
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The Ancient Greeks had shown that regular 3, 5, and 15-sided polygons can be constructed using only a straightedge and compass, but had not been able to discover any more such shapes. In fact, Gauss went beyond even the heptadecagon. He discovered a mathematical formula to find all regular polygons that can be constructed using only straightedge an...
With his discovery of the heptadecagon’s construction, Gauss realized that his place in history as a mathematician of the highest rank was assured. He kept a diary of his discoveries, beginning with the heptadecagon. The diary, listing 146 discoveries, was lost for over 40 years after his death. The year 1796 was a miracle year, with 49 entries – s...
In his time as a student, Gauss made many momentous discoveries in number theory, such as the one above. Number theory was his favorite field. Later, he would famously say:
The Duke of Brunswick continued to fund Gauss’s work, so he was free to delve into any fields that interested him. In 1801, age 24, he published one of the greatest works in the history of mathematics – Disquisitiones Arithmeticae. He chose to write the book in perfect classical Latin, writing most of it three years before it was published. In it h...
On January 1, 1801, Giuseppe Piazzi in Italy discovered a new heavenly body. He did not know what he had found, other than it was very faint, starlike, and not in his star catalog. Over the next few nights he watched the object move slightly among the background stars. Piazzi observed it for 6 weeks, during which time it moved 3 degrees across the ...
In 1806, the Duke of Brunswick died. His financial support for Gauss died too. The following year, Gauss accepted the Chair of Astronomy at Göttingen, which he held for the rest of his life. Gauss took his new astronomy job seriously, regularly using his telescope to observe the night sky – he actually enjoyed this enormously. He made several pract...
Gauss’s approach to issuing academic papers was ‘few, but ripe.’ He was a perfectionist, who only published works he believed were flawless. Many highly significant breakthroughs he made remained unpublished until after his death. In his early years as a professor he released papers dealing with series, integrals, and statistics. He also began look...
The heliotrope is a mirror that reflects the sun’s rays over very long distances. Its drawback is it can only be used in bright sunshine. Heliotropes were used in land surveys in Germany for over 150 years. They were also used to survey the USA.
As a young man, Gauss found he could not keep up with the flow of mathematical ideas pouring unabated into his mind. He chose not to publish some material that he felt was too far ahead of his time – such as Non-Euclidean geometry. Gauss said he had no wish to waste his precious time having pointless arguments with people who could not fully unders...
In 1831, Gauss began to apply mathematical potential theory to the real world. The 54-year-old mathematician helped the 27-year-old physicist Wilhelm Weber to get a physics chair at Göttingen and then worked with him on electricity and magnetism.
Learn about the life and achievements of the last man who knew of all mathematics, Carl Friedrich Gauss. Discover his discoveries in number theory, geometry, astronomy, optics, and more. See his biography, facts, and pictures on this web page.
Carl Friedrich Gauss worked in a wide variety of fields in both mathematics and physics incuding number theory, analysis, differential geometry, geodesy, magnetism, astronomy and optics. His work has had an immense influence in many areas. View eleven larger pictures.
Learn about the life and achievements of Johann Carl Friedrich Gauss, one of the most influential mathematicians in history. From his childhood precociousness to his seminal contributions to number theory, algebra, statistics, geometry, and more. Discover how he proved the fundamental theorem of algebra, the law of quadratic reciprocity, and many other important ideas.
Learn about the life and achievements of Carl Friedrich Gauss, the "Prince of Mathematicians" and the "greatest mathematician since antiquity". Discover his discoveries in number theory, complex numbers, astronomy, and more.
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Carl Friedrich Gauss, orig. Johann Friedrich Carl Gauss, (born April 30, 1777, Brunswick, Duchy of Brunswick—died Feb. 23, 1855, Göttingen, Hanover), German mathematician, astronomer, and physicist. Born to poor parents, he was a prodigy of astounding depth. By his early teens he had already performed astonishing proofs.
