Gaston Tarry
Encyclopedia
Gaston Tarry was a French
mathematician
. Born in Villefranche de Rouergue, Aveyron
, he studied mathematics
at high school before joining the civil service
in Algeria
.
He pursued mathematics as an amateur
, his most famous achievement being his confirmation in 1901 of Leonhard Euler
's conjecture
that no 6×6 Graeco-Latin square
was possible.
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
mathematician
Mathematician
A mathematician is a person whose primary area of study is the field of mathematics. Mathematicians are concerned with quantity, structure, space, and change....
. Born in Villefranche de Rouergue, Aveyron
Aveyron
Aveyron is a département in southern France named after the Aveyron River.- History :Aveyron is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790....
, he studied mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
at high school before joining the civil service
Civil service
The term civil service has two distinct meanings:* A branch of governmental service in which individuals are employed on the basis of professional merit as proven by competitive examinations....
in Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
.
He pursued mathematics as an amateur
Amateur
An amateur is generally considered a person attached to a particular pursuit, study, or science, without pay and often without formal training....
, his most famous achievement being his confirmation in 1901 of Leonhard Euler
Leonhard Euler
Leonhard Euler was a pioneering Swiss mathematician and physicist. He made important discoveries in fields as diverse as infinitesimal calculus and graph theory. He also introduced much of the modern mathematical terminology and notation, particularly for mathematical analysis, such as the notion...
's conjecture
Thirty-six officers problem
The thirty-six officers problem is a mathematical puzzle proposed by Leonhard Euler in 1782.The problem asks if it is possible to arrange 6 regiments consisting of 6 officers each of different ranks in a 6 × 6 square so that no rank or regiment will be repeated in any row or column. Such an...
that no 6×6 Graeco-Latin square
Graeco-Latin square
In mathematics, a Graeco-Latin square or Euler square or orthogonal Latin squares of order n over two sets S and T, each consisting of n symbols, is an n×n arrangement of cells, each cell containing an ordered pair , where s is in S and t is in T, such that every row and every column contains...
was possible.
See also
- List of amateur mathematicians
- Prouhet-Tarry-Escott problem
- Tetramagic square
- Thirty-six officers problemThirty-six officers problemThe thirty-six officers problem is a mathematical puzzle proposed by Leonhard Euler in 1782.The problem asks if it is possible to arrange 6 regiments consisting of 6 officers each of different ranks in a 6 × 6 square so that no rank or regiment will be repeated in any row or column. Such an...