Joseph Ludwig Raabe facts for kids
Joseph Ludwig Raabe (born May 15, 1801, died January 22, 1859) was a smart Swiss mathematician. He was born in Brody, a place in Galicia, and later lived in Zürich, Switzerland. He is famous for his work with mathematical series and functions.
Who Was Joseph Ludwig Raabe?
Joseph Ludwig Raabe came from a poor family. Because of this, he had to start working very early in his life. He earned money by giving private lessons to students.
In 1820, Raabe began studying mathematics. He attended the Polytechnicum in Vienna, Austria. After his studies, he moved to Zürich in the autumn of 1831. By 1833, he became a professor of mathematics there. Later, in 1855, he also became a professor at the new Swiss Polytechnicum.
Raabe's Important Discoveries
Raabe is best known for something called Raabe's ratio test. This test helps mathematicians figure out if an infinite series of numbers will either "converge" (meaning its sum gets closer and closer to a specific number) or "diverge" (meaning its sum grows without limit). His test was an improvement on an earlier test by another mathematician named d'Alembert.
He is also known for the Raabe integral. This is a special mathematical calculation involving the gamma function. The gamma function is a unique type of mathematical function that extends the idea of factorials to all real numbers. Raabe's integral helps to understand this function better.
