Free Essays on Carles Gauss

Carl Friedrich Gauss was born 1777 and died in the year of 1855. He was a German mathematician noted for his wide-ranging contributions to physics, particularly the study of electromagnetism. Born in Braunschweig on April 30, 1777, Gauss studied ancient languages in college, but at the age of 17 he became interested in mathematics and attempted a solution of the classical problem of constructing a regular heptagon, or seven-sided figure, with ruler and compass. He not only succeeded in proving this construction impossible, but went on to give methods of constructing figures with 17, 257, and 65,537 sides. In so doing he proved that the construction, with compass and ruler, of a regular polygon with an odd number of sides was possible only when the number of sides was a prime number of the series 3, 5, 17, 257, and 65,537 or was a multiple of two or more of these numbers. With this discovery he gave up his intention to study languages and turned to mathematics. He studied at the University of Gà ¶ttingen from 1795 to 1798; for his doctoral thesis he submitted a proof that every algebraic equation has at least one root, or solution. This theorem, which had challenged math ematicians for centuries, is still called â€Å"the fundamental theorem of algebra†. His volume on the theory of numbers, Disquisitiones Arithmeticae (Inquiries into Arithmetic, 1801), is a classic work in the field of mathematics. Gauss next turned his attention to astronomy. A faint planetoid, Ceres, had been discovered in 1801; and because astronomers thought it was a planet, they observed it with great interest until losing sight of it. From the early observations Gauss calculated its exact position, so that it was easily rediscovered. He also worked out a new method for calculating the orbits of heavenly bodies. In 1807 Gauss was appointed professor of mathematics and director of the observatory at Gà ¶ttingen, holding both positions until his death there on Februa... Free Essays on Carles Gauss Free Essays on Carles Gauss Carl Friedrich Gauss was born 1777 and died in the year of 1855. He was a German mathematician noted for his wide-ranging contributions to physics, particularly the study of electromagnetism. Born in Braunschweig on April 30, 1777, Gauss studied ancient languages in college, but at the age of 17 he became interested in mathematics and attempted a solution of the classical problem of constructing a regular heptagon, or seven-sided figure, with ruler and compass. He not only succeeded in proving this construction impossible, but went on to give methods of constructing figures with 17, 257, and 65,537 sides. In so doing he proved that the construction, with compass and ruler, of a regular polygon with an odd number of sides was possible only when the number of sides was a prime number of the series 3, 5, 17, 257, and 65,537 or was a multiple of two or more of these numbers. With this discovery he gave up his intention to study languages and turned to mathematics. He studied at the University of Gà ¶ttingen from 1795 to 1798; for his doctoral thesis he submitted a proof that every algebraic equation has at least one root, or solution. This theorem, which had challenged math ematicians for centuries, is still called â€Å"the fundamental theorem of algebra†. His volume on the theory of numbers, Disquisitiones Arithmeticae (Inquiries into Arithmetic, 1801), is a classic work in the field of mathematics. Gauss next turned his attention to astronomy. A faint planetoid, Ceres, had been discovered in 1801; and because astronomers thought it was a planet, they observed it with great interest until losing sight of it. From the early observations Gauss calculated its exact position, so that it was easily rediscovered. He also worked out a new method for calculating the orbits of heavenly bodies. In 1807 Gauss was appointed professor of mathematics and director of the observatory at Gà ¶ttingen, holding both positions until his death there on Februa...