Friedrich Wilhelm Daniel Levi(February 6, 1888 – January 1, 1966) was a Germanmathematicianknown for his work inabstract algebra,especiallytorsion-free abelian groups.He also worked ingeometry,topology,set theory,andanalysis.
Early life and education
editLevi was born to Georg Levi and Emma Blum inMulhouseinAlsace-Lorraine,then part of theGerman Empire.He received his Ph.D. in 1911 underHeinrich Martin Weberat theUniversity of Strasbourg.[1]
Career
editLevi served his mandatory military service in the German Army in 1906–1907, and was called up again serving in the artillery duringWorld War I,1914–18. Awarded theIron Cross,he was discharged as a lieutenant. In 1917, he married Barbara Fitting, with whom he eventually had three children (Paul Levi,Charlotte, and Suzanne). He taught at theUniversity of Leipzigfrom 1920 to 1935, when theNazigovernment dismissed him because of his Jewish ancestry. Friedrich and Barbara moved toCalcutta,India.[1]
In 1935 he accepted an offer as head of the Mathematics Department at theUniversity of Calcutta.[1]He introduced theLevi graphin 1940 at a series of lectures onfinite geometry.[2]He contributed to the understanding ofcombinatorics on wordswhen he articulated theLevi lemmain an article for theCalcutta Mathematical Society.[3]In 1948, Levi became professor of mathematics atTata Institute of Fundamental ResearchinMumbai,India.According toRaghavan Narasimhan,Levi had an important influence on the development of 20th century mathematics in India, especially by introducing modern algebra at the University of Calcutta.[4]
In 1952, he returned to Germany and was a professor at theFree University of Berlinand laterUniversity of Freiburg.He died inFreiburgon the first day of 1966.[1]A bibliography of 70 works in mathematics by Levi is included in the 1991 tribute byLászló Fuchsand Rüdiger Göbel.
Selected publications
edit- Abelsche Gruppen mit abzählbaren Elementen.B. G. Teubner, Leipzig [1919]. (Habilitationsschrift, Universität Leipzig)
- Geometrische Konfigurationen.Hirzel, Leipzig 1929.[5]
- Reinhold Baerand Friedrich Levi:Ränder topologischer Räume.Hirzel, Leipzig 1930.
- On the fundamentals of analysis. Six lectures delivered in February 1938 at the University of Calcutta.University of Calcutta, Calcutta 1939.
- F. W. Levi and R. N. Sen:Plane geometry.Calcutta 1939.
- Finite geometrical systems. Six public lectures delivered in February 1940 at the University of Calcutta.University of Calcutta, Calcutta 1942.
- Algebra.University of Calcutta, Calcutta 1942.
References
edit- ^abcdFuchs, L.;Göbel, R. (1993), "Friedrich Wilhelm Levi, 1888–1966",Abelian Groups (Curaçao, 1991),Lecture Notes in Pure and Applied Mathematics, vol. 146,Marcel Dekker,pp. 1–14,MR1217255
- ^Levi, F. W.(1942),Finite Geometrical Systems,Calcutta: University of Calcutta,MR0006834.
- ^Levi, F. W. (1944), "On semigroups",Bulletin of the Calcutta Mathematical Society,36:141–146,MR0011694,Zbl0061.02405.
- ^Raghavan NarasimhanThe coming of age of mathematics in India,pp. 235–258 inMichael Atiyahet al..Miscellanea Mathematica,Springer Verlag 1991, p. 246
- ^Cohen, Leon Warren (1931)."Review ofGeometrische Konfigurationenby Friedrich Levi "(PDF).Bull. Amer. Math. Soc.37:8–9.doi:10.1090/s0002-9904-1931-05072-2.