Gertrude Ehrlich facts for kids

Gertrude Ehrlich (born January 7, 1923) is an American mathematician. She is known for her work in abstract algebra and algebraic number theory. She was a professor at the University of Maryland, College Park.

Early Life and Escape

Gertrude Ehrlich was born in Vienna, Austria, on January 7, 1923. Her father, Josef Ehrlich, was a lawyer. Her mother was Charlotte Ehrlich.

In the late 1930s, Gertrude attended a special high school in Vienna. This school was for Jewish students who were very good at their studies. Her classmates included Walter Kohn, who later won a Nobel Prize.

In 1939, Gertrude and her family had to leave Austria. At that time, Austria was controlled by the Nazis. They traveled to the United States on a ship called the SS Statendam. Her mother, older sister, and aunt came with her. Her father joined them a year later. They lived in Atlanta for several years. Gertrude became a US citizen in 1945.

Education and Studies

Gertrude finished college in 1943 at the Georgia State College for Women. She then earned a master's degree from the University of North Carolina in 1945. She continued her studies and received her Ph.D. in 1953. This was from the University of Tennessee. Her Ph.D. paper was about "The Structure of Continuous Rings."

Contributions to Mathematics

Gertrude Ehrlich has made important contributions to mathematics. She has written several books that help people learn about math.

Books and Publications

She is the author of a book called Fundamental Concepts of Abstract Algebra. This book helps explain complex math ideas. She also co-authored two other books:

• The Structure of the Real Number System (with Leon Warren Cohen)
• Algebra (with Jacob Goldhaber)

Supporting Math Education

In 1964, Gertrude became an editor for a math magazine. It was called The American Mathematical Monthly. She helped choose articles for the "Classroom Notes" section.

She also started a math competition for high school students. This competition began in 1979. It is held every year for students in Maryland and the District of Columbia.

Research and Theorems

Gertrude Ehrlich also did important research. In 1976, she wrote a paper about "Units and one-sided units in regular rings." This paper introduced the idea of a "morphic group." A special math rule, called Ehrlich's theorem, is named after her. It comes from the same paper.