Charles Bossut | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 11 August 1730 |
| Died | 14 January 1814 (aged 83) Paris, France |
| Nationality | French |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Mathematics |
Charles Bossut (11 August 1730 – 14 January 1814) was a French mathematician and confrère of the Encyclopaedists.
Early life and education
[edit]Bossut was born in 1730 in Tartaras, Loire to Barthélemy Bossut and Jeanne Thonnerine.[1] He lost his father early in life and was raised by his uncle.[1] He received his education at the Jesuit College of Lyon from age fourteen, under the influence of Père Béraud, who also mentored mathematicians such as Montucla and Jérôme Lalande.[1]
Career
[edit]After completing his studies, Bossut followed a path in the Church, becoming known as Abbé Charles Bossut.[1] He delved into mathematical research, collaborating with contemporaries such as Jean le Rond d'Alembert, Alexis Clairaut, and Charles Étienne Louis Camus.[1] In 1753, he became a correspondant at the French Academy of Sciences.[1]
By the age of 21, he was appointed professor of mathematics at the École du Génie in Mézières, where he enhanced the course quality and taught future mathematicians, including Jean-Charles de Borda and Charles-Augustin de Coulomb.[1]
Bossut's research in mechanics and resistance to planetary motion earned recognition from the French Academy of Sciences, resulting in multiple Grand Prix awards.[1] He played a pivotal role in guiding Gaspard Monge's career, who later succeeded him at Mézières.[1]
In the 1760s, Bossut authored textbooks, notably Traité élémentaire de mécanique (1763) and Cours complet de mathématiques (1765).[1] He also served as an examiner at Mézières and later at the École Polytechnique.[1]
In 1774, Bossut was appointed to a newly established chair of hydrodynamics at the Louvre, a position he held until 1780.[1] During this time, he conducted fluid resistance experiments and edited an edition of Pascal's works.[1]
Bossut's later works include contributing to Diderot's Encyclopédie méthodique and publishing Mécanique en général (1792) and Essai sur l'histoire générale des mathématiques (1802).[1] In his later years, Bossut became reclusive and remained unmarried.[1] Nonetheless, he received accolades from several scientific academies, including those in Lyon, Toulouse, St Petersburg, Turin, and Bologna, for his contributions to mathematics.[1]
Works
[edit]- Traité élémentaire d'hydrodynamique (1771) later reworked as Traité théorique et expérimental d'hydrodynamique (1786–87)
- Traité élémentaire de méchanique statique (1772)
- Traité élémentaire de mechanique et de dinamique (in Italian). Vol. 1. Pavia: Stamperia del Monastero di S. Salvatore. 1788.
- Traité élémentaire de mechanique et de dinamique (in Italian). Vol. 2. Pavia: Stamperia del Monastero di S. Salvatore. 1788.
- Cours de mathématiques (1781)
- Histoire générale des mathématiques (1810)
Did write parts of the Encyclopédie on mathematics with Jean le Rond d'Alembert. 1768 member of Académie des sciences
See also
[edit]References
[edit]External links
[edit]- O'Connor, John J.; Robertson, Edmund F., "Charles Bossut", MacTutor History of Mathematics Archive, University of St Andrews
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Wood, James, ed. (1907). The Nuttall Encyclopædia. London and New York: Frederick Warne. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
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