Hilbert
by Constance Reid · first published 1970
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4recommended by
4HN commenters
2013–2025first – last mentioned
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If the life of any 20th century mathematician can be said to be a history of mathematics in his time, it is that of David Hilbert. To the enchanted young mathematicians and physicists who flocked to study with him in Gottingen before and between the World Wars, he seemed mathematics personified, the very air around him "scientifically electric." His remarkably prescient proposal in 1900 of twenty-three problems for the coming century set the course of much subsequent mathematics and remains a feat that no scientist in any field has been able to duplicate. When he died, Nature remarked that t
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If you want a deep dive on Göttingen, Constance Reid's biography of Hilbert is great. Fun fact: Hilbert was born in Königsberg, a port city on the Baltic with a famous set of 7 bridges, and as part of the WWII peace settlement between the allies, Russia got it. But not without…
on “The Mathematical Center of the Universe (1807-1933)” ↗Agreed. Anyone who is curious about him should read the superb biography https://www.amazon.com/Hilbert-Constance-Reid/dp/0387946748. It is excellent both for understanding his life, and slips in the subtle philosophical points that he introduced to mathematics. (Like what mathematical existence should…
on “The Most Important Machine That Was Never Built” ↗Constance Reid's wonderful biography "Hilbert" [New York: Springer-Verlay, 1983; ISBN: 0-387-04999-1] describes a lot of the history of mathematics in Göttingen. It may be the finest mathematical biography I've ever read. Hermann Weyl wrote an article…
on “Göttingen was one of the most productive centers of mathematics (2019)” ↗…constructivism and the corresponding foundational debates (never truly resolved) of the early 20th century, then it is clear what I am referring to. If you're not familiar with that, Constance Reid's Hilbert! contains a surprisingly readable history of this debate for non-mathematicians, disguised as a biography. For another accessible popular reference, The Mathematical Experience walks through this in…
on “What Is the Most Surprising Result in Mathematics?” ↗Interesting to learn she was the little sister of Constance Reid, who wrote a fantastic biography of Hilbert which is on my desk right now.
on “Julia Robinson helped define the limits of mathematical knowledge (2019)” ↗My understanding of how Hilbert meant it is summed up in this quote from him: "Mathematics is a game played according to certain simple rules with meaningless marks on paper." I think that in part because I read Constance Reid's excellent…
on “100 years of Zermelo's axiom of choice: What was the problem with it? (2006)” ↗