Julius Wilhelm Richard Dedekind

Born Oct. 6, 1831, in Braunschweig; died there Feb. 12, 1916. German mathematician. Member of the Berlin Academy of Sciences (1880).

Dedekind was a student of K. Gauss and P. G. L. Dirichlet at the University of Göttingen. His principal works were on the theory of algebraic numbers. He developed a number of general concepts, which formed the basis of modern algebra, particularly the modern definition of the “ideal.” Dedekind is also known as the creator of one of the first rigorous proofs of the theory of real numbers. Together with H. Weber, he published Dirichlet’s lectures on number theory and the complete works of G. F. B. Riemann.