Grace Chisholm Young facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Grace Chisholm Young
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| Born |
Grace Emily Chisholm
15 March 1868 |
| Died | 29 March 1944 (aged 76) Croydon, Surrey, U.K.
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| Nationality | British |
| Alma mater | University of Cambridge University of Göttingen |
| Spouse(s) | William Henry Young (died 1942) |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Mathematics |
| Thesis | Algebraisch-gruppentheoretische Untersuchungen zur sphärischen Trigonometrie (Algebraic Groups of Spherical Trigonometry) (1895) |
| Doctoral advisor | Felix Klein |
| Influenced | E. W. Hobson |
Grace Chisholm Young (born Grace Chisholm, March 15, 1868 – March 29, 1944) was an amazing English mathematician. She studied at Girton College, Cambridge in England. Later, she continued her studies at the University of Göttingen in Germany. There, in 1895, she earned a special degree called a doctorate.
Grace worked closely with her husband, William Henry Young, on many math projects. They published a lot of their work together. For her important work on calculus (a type of math), she won the Gamble Prize for Mathematics from Girton College.
Contents
Early Life and Dreams
Grace was the youngest of three children who grew up. Her father was a high-ranking government official. He was in charge of checking weights and measures. Grace and her sister were taught at home by their parents and a special teacher called a governess. This was common for wealthy families back then.
Her family wanted her to help people in London who were poor. But Grace had a different dream. She wanted to study medicine and become a doctor. Her family, however, did not allow this. Even so, Grace was determined to keep learning. She passed the entrance exam for Cambridge University when she was 17.
Education and Achievements
Grace started at Girton College in 1889 when she was 22. She had won a scholarship to help pay for her studies. At that time, Girton College was connected to Cambridge University. But men and women were graded on separate lists. Since her mother wouldn't let her study medicine, Grace chose to study mathematics. Her father supported this choice.
She did very well in her studies. In 1893, Grace passed her final exams with top marks. She was ranked among the best students, even compared to the men.
Grace also took an unofficial math exam at the University of Oxford in 1892. She did better than all the Oxford students! This made her the first person to get a top degree at both Oxford and Cambridge Universities in any subject. However, these degrees were not officially given to women back then.
Grace stayed at Cambridge for another year. She hoped to become a professor or researcher.
Studying in Germany
Grace wanted to continue her advanced studies. But women were not allowed into graduate schools in England yet. So, she went to the University of Göttingen in Germany. This was one of the world's most important math centers. Luckily, Grace already knew German.
Allowing her to study there was part of an experiment to see if women could attend university. In 1895, at age 27, Grace earned her doctorate in mathematics. She had to get government approval to take the exam. It involved tough questions from many professors. They asked about geometry, physics, and her special topic, all in German! She also wrote a paper called Algebraic Groups of Spherical Trigonometry.
Math Research and Books
After returning to England in 1896, Grace married William Henry Young. She continued her math research. William was a math tutor. In 1897, they both went back to Göttingen. There, they started working together on a new area of math called set theory.
From about 1901, the Youngs began publishing math papers together. They wrote about how functions change, using new ideas Grace learned in Germany. In 1908, they moved to Geneva, Switzerland. Grace stayed there, while William traveled for his teaching jobs.
Even though most of their work was published together, many people believe Grace did most of the writing. She also wrote some math papers by herself. Experts say her individual work was even more important than her husband's. Together, they published about 214 papers and four books!
Grace started publishing papers under her own name in 1914. In 1915, she won the Gamble Prize for Mathematics for her essay on "infinite derivatives." Her work helped create an important math idea called the Denjoy-Young-Saks theorem.
They also wrote a simple geometry book for kids called The First Book of Geometry (1905). It was translated into four languages. In 1906, the Youngs published The Theory of Sets of Points. This was the first textbook ever written about set theory.
Family Life and Other Talents
Grace married William Henry Young in 1896. He had been her math tutor for a short time at Cambridge. They became friends after she sent him a copy of her doctorate paper. They had six children in nine years!
Grace was not just a brilliant mathematician. She also completed almost all the steps to become a medical doctor, except for the training in a hospital. She learned six languages and taught each of her children to play a musical instrument.
She even wrote two books for children:
- Bimbo: A Little Real Story for Jill and Molly (1905) – This book explained to children where babies come from.
- Bimbo and the Frogs: Another Real Story (1907) – This book was about cells.
Their geometry book was inspired by teaching their own son. In 1929, Grace started writing a historical novel. It was set in the 1500s, but it was never published.
Later Years
When World War II started, Grace left Switzerland in 1940. She took two of her grandchildren to England to keep them safe. She planned to go back right away. But because France fell to the war, she couldn't return. This meant William was alone in Switzerland. He died two years later in 1942. Grace Young passed away from a heart attack two years after that.
Of their six children, three became mathematicians. One daughter became a doctor. One son became a chemist and worked in business. Their oldest son, Frank, died in World War I. His death deeply affected his parents and changed their ability to create new math ideas.
One of Grace's 14 grandchildren, Sylvia Wiegand, is also a mathematician. She was even the president of a group called the Association for Women in Mathematics.
Legacy
In 1996, Grace's granddaughter, Sylvia Wiegand, and her husband, Roger, created a special award. It's called the Grace Chisholm Young and William Henry Young Award. This award helps graduate students do research at the University of Nebraska. It honors the amazing contributions of Grace and William.
See also
In Spanish: Grace Chisholm Young para niños
