Henry Burchard Fine
Encyclopedia
Henry Burchard Fine was an American
university dean
and mathematician
.
Fine was born at Chambersburg, Pennsylvania
, and was educated at Princeton
(A.B.
, 1880) and Leipzig
(Ph.D.
, 1885) universities. At Princeton he was assistant professor (1885-'90), then became professor
in 1890, and he also was dean
of the faculty
from 1903-12 and dean
of the department of science after 1909.
He was president of the American Mathematical Society
in 1911-12.
Fine wrote:
Fine Hall, the building housing the Mathematics Department at Princeton, was named after him, in recognition of his key role in developing the mathematics faculty.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
university dean
Dean (education)
In academic administration, a dean is a person with significant authority over a specific academic unit, or over a specific area of concern, or both...
and mathematician
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...
.
Fine was born at Chambersburg, Pennsylvania
Chambersburg, Pennsylvania
Chambersburg is a borough in the South Central region of Pennsylvania, United States. It is miles north of Maryland and the Mason-Dixon line and southwest of Harrisburg in the Cumberland Valley, which is part of the Great Appalachian Valley. Chambersburg is the county seat of Franklin County...
, and was educated at Princeton
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
(A.B.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
, 1880) and 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...
(Ph.D.
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
, 1885) universities. At Princeton he was assistant professor (1885-'90), then became professor
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
in 1890, and he also was dean
Dean (education)
In academic administration, a dean is a person with significant authority over a specific academic unit, or over a specific area of concern, or both...
of the faculty
Faculty (university)
A faculty is a division within a university comprising one subject area, or a number of related subject areas...
from 1903-12 and dean
Dean (education)
In academic administration, a dean is a person with significant authority over a specific academic unit, or over a specific area of concern, or both...
of the department of science after 1909.
He was president of the American Mathematical Society
American Mathematical Society
The American Mathematical Society is an association of professional mathematicians dedicated to the interests of mathematical research and scholarship, which it does with various publications and conferences as well as annual monetary awards and prizes to mathematicians.The society is one of the...
in 1911-12.
Fine wrote:
- Euclid'sEuclidEuclid , fl. 300 BC, also known as Euclid of Alexandria, was a Greek mathematician, often referred to as the "Father of Geometry". He was active in Alexandria during the reign of Ptolemy I...
Elements (1891) - The Number System of AlgebraAlgebraAlgebra is the branch of mathematics concerning the study of the rules of operations and relations, and the constructions and concepts arising from them, including terms, polynomials, equations and algebraic structures...
(1891; second edition, 1903) PDF/DjVu copy from Internet ArchiveInternet ArchiveThe Internet Archive is a non-profit digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It offers permanent storage and access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, music, moving images, and nearly 3 million public domain books. The Internet Archive...
. - A College Algebra (1904)
- Coördinate GeometryGeometryGeometry arose as the field of knowledge dealing with spatial relationships. Geometry was one of the two fields of pre-modern mathematics, the other being the study of numbers ....
, with Henry Dallas Thompson (1909) PDF Copy from University of MichiganUniversity of MichiganThe University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
Historical Math Collection. - Calculus (1927)
Fine Hall, the building housing the Mathematics Department at Princeton, was named after him, in recognition of his key role in developing the mathematics faculty.
Obituary
- Oswald VeblenOswald VeblenOswald Veblen was an American mathematician, geometer and topologist, whose work found application in atomic physics and the theory of relativity. He proved the Jordan curve theorem in 1905.-Life:...
, Henry Burchard Fine—In memoriam, Bulletin of the American Mathematical Society 35, (1929), pp. 726-730.