Weierstrass, Karl Theodor Wilhelm (1815-1897), a German mathematician, carried out important work in a branch of mathematics known as the theory of functions.
Karl Theodor Wilhelm Weierstrass was born in on Oct. 31, 1815, in Ostenfelde, Westphalia (now in Germany). In 1834, he entered the University of Bonn, Germany, to take coursework that included law, finance, and economics. However, he did not complete this work because he was more interested in mathematics. In 1839, Weierstrass enrolled at the Theological and Philosophical Academy in Munster to train as a teacher and to study pure mathematics. He received his teacher’s certificate in 1841 and worked for a number of years as a schoolteacher.
Weierstrass’s first major paper appeared in 1854 in Crelle’s Journal, an important mathematical publication. In recognition of this work, he received an honorary doctorate from the University of Königsberg; the city of Königsberg is now Kaliningrad, Russia. In 1856, Weierstrass became professor of mathematics at the Royal Polytechnic School in Berlin and associate professor at the University of Berlin. His lecture courses attracted students from all over the world. Weierstrass was elected to the Royal Society of London, one of the world’s foremost scientific organizations, in 1881. In 1895, he received the Royal Society’s Copley Medal. He died in Berlin on Feb. 19, 1897.
