Hilbert, David
- David Hilbert, b. Jan. 23, 1862, d. Feb. 14, 1943, was a
German mathematician whose work in geometry had the
greatest influence on the field since Euclid. After
making a systematic study of the axioms of Euclidean
geometry, Hilbert proposed a set of 21 such axioms and
analyzed their significance.
- Hilbert received his Ph.D. from the University of
Konigsberg and served on its faculty from 1886 to 1895.
He became (1895) professor of mathematics at the
University of Gottingen, where he remained for the rest
of his life. Between 1900 and 1914, many mathematicians
from the United States who later played an important role
in the development of mathematics went to Gottingen to
study under him.
- Hilbert contributed to several branches of mathematics,
including algebraic number theory, functional analysis,
mathematical physics, and the calculus of variations. He
also enumerated 23 unsolved problems of mathematics that
he considered worthy of further investigation. Since
Hilbert's time, nearly all these problems have been
solved.