Hilbert in Missouri

• Autores: David E. Zitarelli
• Localización: Mathematics magazine, ISSN 0025-570X, Vol. 84, Nº. 5, 2011, págs. 351-364
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • David Hilbert never traveled to the United States yet he exerted considerable influence on the development of mathematics in the country during the first half of the twentieth century through the thirteen Ph.D. students he produced from 1899 through 1910. This article introduces three of those graduates (Earle Hedrick, O. D. Kellogg, and W. D. A. Westfall) who formed the nucleus of the vibrant mathematics department at the University of Missouri 1903�1925 and who played important roles in the expansion of mathematical activities into what was then the southwestern part of the U.S. The impressive curriculum this trio constructed without aid of a Ph.D. program produced several notable mathematicians. Moreover, the careers of some of their colleagues illustrate various aspects of academic life in America a century ago.