Giovanni Giambelli is remembered in mathematics for work the next generation could build on.
The record lists Giovanni Giambelli as Italian mathematician (1876-1953).
Giovanni Giambelli was born at Verona in 1876. His recorded nationality is Italy. He studied at Scuola Normale Superiore. Classe di Scienze.
Around the turn of the twentieth century the foundations of mathematics were under open attack, and set theory and logic became urgent questions.
His academic posts were held at University of Cagliari and University of Messina.
His principal contribution is Giambelli's formula. Mathematics accumulates without discarding: a proof from two thousand years ago is still a proof.
That the work was done from Italy matters: mathematical training, institutions and the language of publication have never been evenly distributed.
Giovanni Giambelli died in 1953, aged 77. The proofs remain, and a proof does not decay - which is the particular permanence mathematics offers.
Achievements
- Notable work: Giambelli's formula
- Held posts at University of Cagliari and University of Messina
