David hilbert brief biography of maya

David Hilbert ( – ) was one of the most influential mathematicians of the 20th century.

Hilbert discovered and developed a broad range of fundamental ideas including invariant theory , the calculus of variations , commutative algebra , algebraic number theory , the foundations of geometry , spectral theory of operators and its application to integral equations , mathematical physics , and the foundations of mathematics particularly proof theory.

He adopted and defended Georg Cantor 's set theory and transfinite numbers. In , he presented a collection of problems that set a course for mathematical research of the 20th century. Hilbert and his students contributed to establishing rigor and developed important tools used in modern mathematical physics. He was a cofounder of proof theory and mathematical logic.

His paternal grandfather was David Hilbert, a judge and Geheimrat. His mother Maria had an interest in philosophy, astronomy and prime numbers , while his father Otto taught him Prussian virtues. David's sister, Elise, was born when he was six. He began his schooling aged eight, two years later than the usual starting age. In late , Hilbert entered the Friedrichskolleg Gymnasium Collegium fridericianum , the same school that Immanuel Kant had attended years before ; but, after an unhappy period, he transferred to late and graduated from early the more science-oriented Wilhelm Gymnasium.

Hilbert developed a lifelong friendship with the shy, gifted Minkowski. An intense and fruitful scientific exchange among the three began, and Minkowski and Hilbert especially would exercise a reciprocal influence over each other at various times in their scientific careers. John von Neumann was his assistant. Among his 69 Ph. Franz suffered throughout his life from mental illness, and after he was admitted into a psychiatric clinic, Hilbert said, "From now on, I must consider myself as not having a son.

Hilbert considered the mathematician Hermann Minkowski to be his "best and truest friend".