Harold Scott MacDonald Coxeter facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Harold Scott MacDonald Coxeter
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| Born | February 9, 1907 London, England
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| Died | March 31, 2003 (aged 96) Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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| Alma mater | University of Cambridge (B.A., 1929; Ph.D., 1931) |
| Known for | study of geometry and mathematics |
| Spouse(s) | Hendrina, died in 1999 |
| Children | Susan Thomas, and a son, Edgar |
| Awards | Smith's Prize (1931) Henry Marshall Tory Medal (1949) Jeffery–Williams Prize (1973) CRM-Fields-PIMS prize (1995) Sylvester Medal (1997) |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Geometry |
| Institutions | University of Toronto |
| Doctoral advisor | H. F. Baker |
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Harold Scott MacDonald Coxeter, often called "Donald," was a famous British and Canadian mathematician. He was born on February 9, 1907, and passed away on March 31, 2003. Many people think he was one of the most important geometers (a type of mathematician who studies shapes and spaces) of the 1900s.
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About Harold Coxeter
Harold Coxeter was born in Kensington, a part of London, England. His father, Harold Samuel Coxeter, ran a family business that made medical tools. He was also a sculptor and a singer. His mother, Lucy Coxeter, was an artist who painted portraits and landscapes.
Early Life and Education
When he was young, Harold Coxeter loved music. He composed his own music and was a very good pianist by age 10. He believed that mathematics and music were closely connected. He even wrote an article about his ideas in 1962.
He went to school at King Alfred School and St George's School in England. His best friend there was John Flinders Petrie, who also became a mathematician. Petrie polygons, a type of geometric shape, are named after him.
In 1926, Coxeter went to Trinity College at the University of Cambridge to study mathematics. He earned his first degree in 1928 and his doctorate (a higher degree) in 1931. He also spent time studying at Princeton University in the United States.
Career and Discoveries
In 1936, Coxeter moved to Canada and started working at the University of Toronto. He stayed there for 60 years, teaching and doing research. He became a full professor in 1948.
He wrote many important books about geometry. One of his famous books, The Fifty-Nine Icosahedra, was published in 1938. An icosahedron is a shape with 20 faces.
Coxeter was elected a member of the Royal Society of Canada in 1948. He also became a Fellow of the Royal Society in London in 1950. These are very important honors for scientists.
He met the famous artist M. C. Escher in 1954. They became good friends. Coxeter's work on geometric shapes helped inspire some of Escher's amazing artworks, especially his "Circle Limit" series. These artworks show patterns based on hyperbolic geometry, which is a special kind of geometry. Coxeter also inspired some ideas of the inventor Buckminster Fuller.
Coxeter, along with M. S. Longuet-Higgins and J. C. P. Miller, were the first to list all the "uniform polyhedra" in 1954. These are special 3D shapes with regular faces.
Awards and Recognition
Harold Coxeter received many awards for his important work in mathematics:
- In 1931, he won Smith's Prize.
- In 1949, he received the Henry Marshall Tory Medal.
- In 1973, he was given the Jeffery–Williams Prize.
- In 1995, he won the CRM-Fields-PIMS prize.
- In 1997, he was awarded the Sylvester Medal from the Royal Society.
Since 1978, the Canadian Mathematical Society has given out the Coxeter–James Prize in his honor. This award recognizes young mathematicians in Canada.
In 1990, he became a foreign member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. In 1997, he was made a Companion of the Order of Canada. This is one of the highest honors a Canadian citizen can receive.
In 1982, a special book called The Geometric Vein was published to honor him. It contained 41 essays about geometry, written by other mathematicians.
See also
In Spanish: Harold Scott MacDonald Coxeter para niños
