Every year, on the 22nd of December, people across the country celebrate National Mathematics Day. They mark the birth anniversary of Mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan. In 2012, former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh declared December 22 as National Mathematics Day. The day honors the life and achievements of Ramanujan in the field of mathematics.
National Mathematics Day 2023: Know more about Srinivasa Ramanujan's life and career
The genius mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan was born on December 22, 1887, in Erode, Tamil Nadu. Since childhood, his interest has been in mathematics due to which he mastered trigonometry at the age of 12. He obtained a copy of George Shoobridge Carr's Synopsis of Elementary Results in Pure and Applied Mathematics at the age of 15. He also received a scholarship from the Government Arts College Kumbakonam.
In 1912, he worked as a clerk in Madras Port Trust. There, some colleagues recognized his math talents. One of them referred him to Professor GH Hardy of Trinity College, Cambridge University. After this, he met Hardy in 1913 and went to Trinity College.
Received Bachelor of Science Degree
In 1916, Ramanujan took the degree of Bachelor of Science. After this, with the help of Hardy, he published several papers on his subject. In 1917, Ramanujan was elected to the London Mathematical Society. In 1918, the great mathematician was elected to the prestigious Royal Society. He was recognized for his research on elliptic functions and the theory of numbers. He was also the first Indian to be elected a Fellow of Trinity College. In 1919, he returned to India and died on 26 April 1920 at the mere age of 32.
No formal training in Mathematics
Srinivasa Ramanujan never received coaching in pure mathematics. Yet, he made impressive contributions to the field. He works in infinite series, continuous functions, number theory, and mathematical analysis. He also made notable contributions. These include hypergeometric series, Riemann series, and aliphatic integrals. Also, the theory of divergent series and functional equations of the zeta function. He is said to have discovered his theorems and independently compiled 3,900 results.
