[SOC] [OT] But important scientific question

[Ian C. Purdie]

Sorry to bother the list but I've just had a "serious debate" with my 
twin 12 year old grand-daughters attending first year of High School.

For there first assignment in mathematics [they're in different classes] 
they are to select a famous mathematician in history, briefly detail his 
life and times and expand upon why he is famous in mathematics and a few 
other things.

The first twin asked me last Friday evening and I mentioned the usual 
names off the top of my head. Euclid, Archimedes etc. etc.

She countered that everyone wanted to do Einstein.

I suggested that Einstein was a brilliant Physicist and no doubt while 
obviously well versed in mathematics, that was not for which he was well 
known [in the strict sense] for.

This evening the other twin is now wedded to the idea of Einstein and 
the other one said, the teacher said, Einstein is a well known 
mathematician.

What say ye geniuses? Who, given the assignment, would seriously select 
Einstein among the prominent mathematicians of the world.

I confess, that in my early days given a similar assignment as Sydney 
University, I was consumed by a book called "Men in Mathematics" which 
covered the life and times of prominent mathematicians and I found it a 
riveting read.


Thanks! :)

Ian C. Purdie - VK2TIP
http://www.electronics-tutorials.com/