Leonhard Euler

Born in 1701, Leonhard Euler rose to prominence as a Swiss scientist. His contributions remain significant. This mathematician and physicists is regarded worldwide as one of the original founders of pure mathematics. Both trigonometry and modern analytical geometry owe him thanks.

Leonhard Euler

Number theory, geometry, and calculus were all revolutionized by the work he left behind over the course of his extraordinary life. It is difficult to imagine where so much of the mathematics we use today, math that is profoundly necessary in so many seen and unseen aspects of our lives, had it not been for this remarkable man.

The Life of Leonhard Euler

Had Leonhard Euler chosen the life of the clergy over the life of a scientist, as his father wanted him to do, it's interesting to picture what our world would be like today. He discovered geometry while studying at the University of Basel, and from there he was able to fully embrace and pursue mathematics.

He became a member of the St. Petersburg Academy of Science in 1727. It was also around this time that he worked as a medical lieutenant for the Russian Navy. He continued to keep busying by serving as a professor of physics (1730) and a professor of mathematics (1733) during his time at the Academy.

Euler achieved his greatest fame in his lifetime as a successful, celebrated author of essays and books. He remains one of the most prolific scientist-writers of all time, publishing well over 800 books and essays over the course of his life.

One of his most famous works was the book Mechanica, which was published between 1736 and 1737. This particular work won Euler legions of fans for its brilliant ability to relate Newtonian dynamics as a type of mathematical analysis.

The contributions of Leonard Euler as a writer don't end there. He was the first to combine Leibniz's differential calculus with Newton's method of fluxions into a form of mathematical analysis. He also made groundbreaking contributions to number theory.

Euler lived long enough to contribute a staggering amount of material and theory to science. Upon his death in 1783 at 76 years old, he was buried next to his first wife at the Smolensk Lutheran Cemetery in Russia.

The life of Leonard Euler is an astonishing one. The chronology of mathematical achievement that has been realized through the centuries through his teachings is perhaps the biggest reason for his memory living on.

Rumor has it …

Besides making discoveries in mathematics, Leonard Euler also developed a song that is still popular today that starts out, "When you're running down to first and you feel a bubble burst, diarrhea …"

Written by Kevin Lepton

Published May 14, 2013