Friedrich Robert Helmert
Encyclopedia
Friedrich Robert Helmert (July 31, 1843 – June 15, 1917) was a German
geodesist and an important writer on the theory of errors.
Helmert was born in Freiberg
, Kingdom of Saxony
. After schooling in Freiberg and Dresden
, he entered the Polytechnische Schule, now Technische Universität, in Dresden to study engineering science in 1859. Finding him especially enthusiastic about geodesy, one of his teachers, August Nagel, hired him while still a student to work on the triangulation of the Erzgebirge and the drafting of the trigonometric network for Saxony. In 1863 Helmert became Nagel's assistant on the Central European Arc Measurement. After a year's study of mathematics and astronomy Helmert obtained his doctor's degree from the University of Leipzig
in 1867 for a thesis based on his work for Nagel.
In 1870 Helmert became instructor and in 1872 professor at RWTH Aachen
, the new Technical University in Aachen
. At Aachen he wrote Die mathematischen und physikalischen Theorieen der höheren Geodäsie (Part I was published in 1880 and Part II in 1884). This work laid the foundations of modern geodesy
. See history of geodesy
.
The method of least squares
had been introduced into geodesy by Gauss
and Helmert wrote a fine book on least squares (1872, with a second edition in 1907) in this tradition. Hald (p. 633) gives this assessment: "[It] is a pedagogical masterpiece; it became a standard text until it was superseded by expositions using matrix algebra." In 1876 Helmert published an article deriving the distribution of the sample variance for a normal population. The work was described in German textbooks, including his own, but the English statisticians 'Student' and Fisher
did not know of it and re-derived the distribution.
From 1887 Helmert was professor of advanced geodesy at the University of Berlin and director of the Geodetic Institute. In 1916 he had a stroke and died of its effects the following year in Potsdam
.
Helmert received many honours. He was president of the global geodetic
association of "Internationale Erdmessung
", member of the Prussian Academy of Sciences
in Berlin
, was elected a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences
in 1905, and recipient of some 25 German and foreign decorations.
There is an obituary at
There is a photograph of Helmert at
and three more at
See also
The first edition of Helmert's textbook on least squares is available at the GDZ site
A partial scan of Die mathematischen und physikalischen Theorieen der höheren Geodäsie (Part I) is available on the site
An English translation of Die mathematischen und physikalischen Theorieen der höheren Geodäsie (Part I) is available at
There is an account of Helmert's work on the theory of errors in section 10.6 of
For eponymous terms in statistics see
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
geodesist and an important writer on the theory of errors.
Helmert was born in Freiberg
Freiberg, Saxony
Freiberg is a city in the Free State of Saxony, Germany, administrative center of the Mittelsachsen district.-History:The city was founded in 1186, and has been a center of the mining industry in the Ore Mountains for centuries...
, Kingdom of Saxony
Kingdom of Saxony
The Kingdom of Saxony , lasting between 1806 and 1918, was an independent member of a number of historical confederacies in Napoleonic through post-Napoleonic Germany. From 1871 it was part of the German Empire. It became a Free state in the era of Weimar Republic in 1918 after the end of World War...
. After schooling in Freiberg and Dresden
Dresden
Dresden is the capital city of the Free State of Saxony in Germany. It is situated in a valley on the River Elbe, near the Czech border. The Dresden conurbation is part of the Saxon Triangle metropolitan area....
, he entered the Polytechnische Schule, now Technische Universität, in Dresden to study engineering science in 1859. Finding him especially enthusiastic about geodesy, one of his teachers, August Nagel, hired him while still a student to work on the triangulation of the Erzgebirge and the drafting of the trigonometric network for Saxony. In 1863 Helmert became Nagel's assistant on the Central European Arc Measurement. After a year's study of mathematics and astronomy Helmert obtained his doctor's degree from the University of Leipzig
University of Leipzig
The University of Leipzig , located in Leipzig in the Free State of Saxony, Germany, is one of the oldest universities in the world and the second-oldest university in Germany...
in 1867 for a thesis based on his work for Nagel.
In 1870 Helmert became instructor and in 1872 professor at RWTH Aachen
RWTH Aachen
RWTH Aachen University is a research university located in Aachen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany with roughly 33,000 students enrolled in 101 study programs....
, the new Technical University in Aachen
Aachen
Aachen has historically been a spa town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Aachen was a favoured residence of Charlemagne, and the place of coronation of the Kings of Germany. Geographically, Aachen is the westernmost town of Germany, located along its borders with Belgium and the Netherlands, ...
. At Aachen he wrote Die mathematischen und physikalischen Theorieen der höheren Geodäsie (Part I was published in 1880 and Part II in 1884). This work laid the foundations of modern geodesy
Geodesy
Geodesy , also named geodetics, a branch of earth sciences, is the scientific discipline that deals with the measurement and representation of the Earth, including its gravitational field, in a three-dimensional time-varying space. Geodesists also study geodynamical phenomena such as crustal...
. See history of geodesy
History of geodesy
Geodesy ,[1] also named geodetics, is the scientific discipline that deals with the measurement and representation of the Earth.Humanity has always been interested in the Earth...
.
The method of least squares
Least squares
The method of least squares is a standard approach to the approximate solution of overdetermined systems, i.e., sets of equations in which there are more equations than unknowns. "Least squares" means that the overall solution minimizes the sum of the squares of the errors made in solving every...
had been introduced into geodesy by Gauss
Carl Friedrich Gauss
Johann Carl Friedrich Gauss was a German mathematician and scientist who contributed significantly to many fields, including number theory, statistics, analysis, differential geometry, geodesy, geophysics, electrostatics, astronomy and optics.Sometimes referred to as the Princeps mathematicorum...
and Helmert wrote a fine book on least squares (1872, with a second edition in 1907) in this tradition. Hald (p. 633) gives this assessment: "[It] is a pedagogical masterpiece; it became a standard text until it was superseded by expositions using matrix algebra." In 1876 Helmert published an article deriving the distribution of the sample variance for a normal population. The work was described in German textbooks, including his own, but the English statisticians 'Student' and Fisher
Ronald Fisher
Sir Ronald Aylmer Fisher FRS was an English statistician, evolutionary biologist, eugenicist and geneticist. Among other things, Fisher is well known for his contributions to statistics by creating Fisher's exact test and Fisher's equation...
did not know of it and re-derived the distribution.
From 1887 Helmert was professor of advanced geodesy at the University of Berlin and director of the Geodetic Institute. In 1916 he had a stroke and died of its effects the following year in Potsdam
Potsdam
Potsdam is the capital city of the German federal state of Brandenburg and part of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region. It is situated on the River Havel, southwest of Berlin city centre....
.
Helmert received many honours. He was president of the global geodetic
Geodesy
Geodesy , also named geodetics, a branch of earth sciences, is the scientific discipline that deals with the measurement and representation of the Earth, including its gravitational field, in a three-dimensional time-varying space. Geodesists also study geodynamical phenomena such as crustal...
association of "Internationale Erdmessung
International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems Service
The International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems Service , formerly the International Earth Rotation Service, is the body responsible for maintaining global time and reference frame standards, notably through its Earth Orientation Parameter and International Celestial Reference System ...
", member of the Prussian Academy of Sciences
Prussian Academy of Sciences
The Prussian Academy of Sciences was an academy established in Berlin on 11 July 1700, four years after the Akademie der Künste or "Arts Academy", to which "Berlin Academy" may also refer.-Origins:...
in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, was elected a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences
Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences
The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences or Kungliga Vetenskapsakademien is one of the Royal Academies of Sweden. The Academy is an independent, non-governmental scientific organization which acts to promote the sciences, primarily the natural sciences and mathematics.The Academy was founded on 2...
in 1905, and recipient of some 25 German and foreign decorations.
See also
- Helmert transformationHelmert transformationThe Helmert transformation is a transformation method within a three-dimensional space...
(in geodesy) - coordinate systemCoordinate systemIn geometry, a coordinate system is a system which uses one or more numbers, or coordinates, to uniquely determine the position of a point or other geometric element. The order of the coordinates is significant and they are sometimes identified by their position in an ordered tuple and sometimes by...
- Helmert–Wolf blocking
- national survey
- terrestrial gravity field
External links
There is an obituary at
There is a photograph of Helmert at
- Helmert on the Portraits of Statisticians page
and three more at
See also
The first edition of Helmert's textbook on least squares is available at the GDZ site
A partial scan of Die mathematischen und physikalischen Theorieen der höheren Geodäsie (Part I) is available on the site
An English translation of Die mathematischen und physikalischen Theorieen der höheren Geodäsie (Part I) is available at
- http://geographiclib.sourceforge.net/geodesic-papers/helmert80-en.html
There is an account of Helmert's work on the theory of errors in section 10.6 of
For eponymous terms in statistics see
- Earliest known uses of some of the words of mathematics: A for the Abbe–Helmert criterion and Earliest known uses of some of the words of mathematics: H for the Helmert transformation.