Kummer, Ernst Eduard
Kummer, Ernst Eduard
Born Jan. 29, 1810, in Sorau; died May 14, 1893, in Berlin. German mathematician.
Kummer was a professor at the University of Berlin from 1856 to 1884. His first studies were devoted to series (Kummer’s test for convergence). Around 1842 he created the theory of algebraic numbers, whose methods have greatly influenced the subsequent development of number theory and algebra. His study of the divisibility of algebraic numbers led him to introduce the concept of ideal numbers. Kummer is the author of works on geometry, definite integrals, and theoretical mechanics.