Traian Lalescu

Traian Lalescu
Born (1882-07-12)12 July 1882
Bucharest, Romania
Died 15 June 1929(1929-06-15) (aged 46)
Bucharest, Romania
Residence Romania
Nationality Romanian
Fields Mathematician
Institutions Polytechnic University of Timișoara
University of Bucharest
Alma mater University of Bucharest
University of Paris
Doctoral advisor Émile Picard
Known for Integral equations

Traian Lalescu (Romanian: [traˈjan laˈlesku]; 12 July 1882 – 15 June 1929) was a Romanian mathematician. His main focus was on integral equations and he contributed to work in the areas of functional equations, trigonometric series, mathematical physics, geometry, mechanics, algebra, and the history of mathematics.

Life

He went to the Carol I High School in Craiova, continuing high school in Roman and Iaşi. After entering the University of Iaşi, he completed his undergraduate studies in 1903 at the University of Bucharest.

He earned his Ph.D. in Mathematics from the University of Paris in 1908. His dissertation, Sur les équations de Volterra, was written under the direction of Émile Picard. In 1911, he published Introduction to the Theory of Integral Equations, the first book ever on the subject of integral equations.

He was a professor at the University of Bucharest, the Polytechnic University of Timișoara (where he was the first rector, in 1920), and the Polytechnic University of Bucharest.

The Lalescu sequence

L_{n} = \sqrt[n+1]{(n+1)!}-\sqrt[n]{n!}
\lim_{n\to\infty} L_{n} = \frac{1}{e}

Legacy

Bust of Traian Lalescu,
in Timişoara.

There are several institutions bearing his name, including Colegiul Naţional de Informatică Traian Lalescu in Hunedoara and Liceul Teoretic Traian Lalescu in Reşiţa. There is also a Traian Lalescu Street in Timişoara. The National Mathematics Contest Traian Lalescu for undergraduate students is also named after him.

A statue of Lalescu, carved in 1930 by Cornel Medrea, is situated in front of the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, in Timişoara.

Work

References

  1. Longley, W. R. (1913). "Review: Introduction à la Théorie des Équations intégrales by T. Lalesco and L'Équation de Fredholm et ses Applications à la Physique mathématique by H. B. Heywood and M. Frechét". Bull. Amer. Math. Soc. 19: 236–241. doi:10.1090/S0002-9904-1913-02333-4.

External links

Preceded by
-
Rector of the Polytechnic University of Timișoara
1920–1921
Succeeded by
Victor Vâlcovici
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Tuesday, February 23, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.