Thomas Berry
Profesor Titular (Jubilado) del Departamento de Matemáticas Puras y Aplicadas
Algunos publican una pagina web en castellano y another in
English. Yo, from laziness y confusión mental, have
just this
single, macaronic page.
Address:
Universidad Simón Bolívar
Departamento de Matemáticas
Caracas, Venezuela
email:berry at usb.ve
Office: MyS 334 A
Phone: +58 212 906-3284
FAX: +58 212 906-3278
Mailing Address
CCS 90056
PO BOX 025323
MIAMI FL 33102-5323
USA
Principal research interests:
Effective methods in Algebraic
Geometry and Algebraic Number Theory. Applications in coding,
cryptography and computer-aided design.
Preprints and recent publications
Un primer paso hacia la teoría de
códigos correctores de error. Necesita javascript activado.
Bicentary of the death of Karl Wilhelm, Duke of Brunswick
Karl Wilhelm Ferdinand, Herzog zu
Braunschweig-Lüneburg, Fürst von
Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel-Bevern, to give him his full, splendid,
titles, died on 10 November 1806, as a result of wounds received at
the battle of Aüerstädt (14 October 1806), a battle in
which he
commanded the Prussian army. A brave and able soldier (though no
match for Napoleon and his generals, as witness his death), Karl
Wilhelm ruled his dutchy as a benevolent despot, according to the
18th century
model. He rescued Brunswick from near bankruptcy caused by the
innumerable wars of the period, returned it to a modest prosperity,
and implemented many liberal reforms. More details of this honourable
life can be found on the web. Mathematicians should honour
the Duke's memory because of his connexion with Gauss. From 1791 until
his death in 1806, Karl Wilhelm was Gauss' faithful patron. He
financed Gauss' secondary school, pre- and postgraduate studies, and
subsequently paid Gauss a stipend with no obligations attached. No
doubt because of this generosity, 1795-1806 was Gauss' most
productive period in pure mathematics, and notably saw the production
of the Disquisitiones Arithmeticae, the dawn of modern
number theory. After the Duke's death Gauss lost his stipend and was
obliged to move to Göttingen, where he turned to more applied
subjects. So, mathematical colleagues, now is the time to raise a glass, or perhaps a
stein, to the memory of Karl Wilhelm, a worthy representative of the German
enlightenment and princely patron of the prince of mathematicians.
I was moved to write the above after reading the life of Gauss in
Ioan James: Remarkable Mathematicians: From Euler to von Neumann (CUP
2003), ISBN-10: 0521520940. A fascinating book.
Review: Stieg Larsson. The girl who played
with fire. A diatribe written under unbearable provocation.
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