Hildegard Rothe-Ille facts for kids
Hildegard Rothe-Ille (born Hildegard Ille) was a smart German mathematician. She lived from 1899 to 1942. She made important contributions to mathematics during her life.
Contents
Her Amazing Career in Math
Becoming a Mathematician
Hildegard Rothe-Ille was one of the best students of a famous mathematician named Issai Schur. She earned her special degree, called a doctorate, in mathematics in 1924. This was a big achievement!
Another mathematician, Alexander Soifer, said that Issai Schur kept working on a special area of math. He also inspired his students, including Hildegard Ille, to do the same.
Working with Albert Einstein
After getting her doctorate, Hildegard received a special scholarship. This was in 1925 at the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute for Physics. Guess who was in charge there? None other than Albert Einstein!
Hildegard was the only woman to get this scholarship that year. She even received more money than the male students. This shows how talented and recognized she was.
Teaching and Reviewing Papers
From 1926 to 1928, Hildegard taught at the Chamisso school in Berlin-Schöneberg, Germany. She helped many students learn about math.
In 1928, she got married. At that time, a German law said married women could not work for pay. So, Hildegard could not teach anymore. However, she still stayed involved in math. She reviewed many math papers written by other mathematicians. She reviewed 40 papers before 1928 and 129 papers between 1930 and 1937.
Later, in 1940, records show she was a part-time German teacher. She taught at William Penn College in the United States.
Her Personal Life and Moving to America
Family and Early Life
Hildegard's parents were Agnes Clara Bertha Thurm and Otto Friedrich Carl Ille. Sadly, her father Otto passed away in 1900 when she was very young.
In 1928, she married Erich Rothe. They had a son named Erhard W. Rothe in April 1931, when they were living in Breslau.
Escaping Nazi Germany
Life in Germany became very difficult in the 1930s due to the Nazi government. Because of this, Hildegard, Erich, and their son Erhard had to leave their home country.
They first arrived in Zürich, Switzerland, in 1937. After that, Erich went to the United States. Hildegard and Erhard followed him in 1938. They started a new life in America.
