Ivor Grattan-Guinness facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Ivor Grattan-Guinness
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Ivor Grattan-Guinness in 2003.
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| Born | 23 June 1941 Bakewell, England
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| Died | 12 December 2014 (aged 73) England
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| Nationality | British |
| Alma mater | Wadham College, Oxford London School of Economics University of London |
| Known for | History of mathematics, history of logic |
| Awards | Kenneth O. May Medal |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Mathematician, historian, logician |
| Institutions | Middlesex University London School of Economics |
| Doctoral students | Niccolò Guicciardini |
| Notes | |
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He shared a birthday with the mathematician Alan Turing, born 29 years earlier.
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Ivor Owen Grattan-Guinness (born June 23, 1941 – died December 12, 2014) was a British historian. He studied the history of mathematics and logic. He was very interested in how these subjects grew and changed over time.
Contents
Life of Ivor Grattan-Guinness
Ivor Grattan-Guinness was born in Bakewell, England. His father was a mathematics teacher. Ivor studied math at Wadham College, Oxford. He later earned a master's degree in mathematical logic and the philosophy of science from the London School of Economics in 1966.
His Studies and Career
He continued his studies at the University of London. There, he earned his PhD in the history of science in 1969. He later received a higher doctorate, a D.Sc., in 1978. He became a professor at Middlesex University. He was known as an Emeritus Professor, which means he was a retired professor who kept his title because of his important work. He also worked as a visiting researcher at the London School of Economics.
Awards and Recognition
Ivor Grattan-Guinness received the Kenneth O. May Medal in 2009. This award is given for important contributions to the history of mathematics. He was also made an Honorary Member of the Bertrand Russell Society in 2010. He was a fellow at the Institute for Advanced Study in the United States. He was also a member of the International Academy of the History of Science.
Work as an Editor
He was very active in publishing academic journals.
- From 1974 to 1981, he was the editor of Annals of Science.
- In 1979, he started a new journal called History and Philosophy of Logic. He edited it until 1992.
- He was also an associate editor for Historia Mathematica for many years.
He helped edit the writings of famous thinkers like Charles Sanders Peirce and Bertrand Russell. He gave over 570 invited talks in more than 20 countries.
Leadership Roles
From 1986 to 1988, Grattan-Guinness was the President of the British Society for the History of Mathematics. He was also the Vice-President in 1992. In 1991, he became a member of the Académie Internationale d'Histoire des Sciences. He helped edit the section on mathematicians and statisticians for the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.
Personal Interests
Ivor Grattan-Guinness was interested in coincidence. He even wrote about it for the Society for Psychical Research. He felt a special connection to the number 225 (which is 15 squared). He once saw a car with the license plate IGG225, which matched his initials and his special number. He passed away on December 12, 2014, at the age of 73, due to heart failure. His wife, Enid Grattan-Guinness, survived him.
His Work and Research
Ivor Grattan-Guinness studied many different time periods in history. He focused on the development of calculus and mathematical analysis. He also looked at how these ideas were used in mechanics and mathematical physics. He was very interested in the rise of set theory and mathematical logic.
He wanted to understand how thinkers from the past viewed their discoveries. For example, he studied how Euclid saw his own work. He believed it was important to understand what past thinkers didn't know, not just what they did know. He did a lot of research using original documents. He could do this because he knew many European languages.
Selected Publications
Ivor Grattan-Guinness wrote and edited many books and articles.
Books He Wrote
- 1970. The Development of the Foundations of Mathematical Analysis from Euler to Riemann.
- 1977. Dear Russell—Dear Jourdain: a Commentary on Russell's Logic.
- 1997. The Rainbow of Mathematics: A History of the Mathematical Sciences.
- 2000. The Search for Mathematical Roots, 1870–1940. This book looked at how logic, set theories, and the foundations of mathematics developed. It covered the ideas of thinkers like Gottlob Frege, Bertrand Russell, and Kurt Gödel. It also explored the rise of algebraic logic and set theory.
- 2009. Routes of Learning: Highways, Pathways, and Byways in the History of Mathematics.
Books He Edited
- 2003. Companion Encyclopedia of the History and Philosophy of the Mathematical Sciences, 2 vols.
- 2005. Landmark Writings in Western Mathematics.
See also
In Spanish: Ivor Grattan-Guinness para niños
