Weyl, Hermann Klaus Hugo (1885–1955)
German mathematician and mathematical physicist (known as "Peter" to his
close friends) whose work involved symmetry theory, topology,
and non-Euclidean geometry.
Weyl studied under David Hilbert at Göttingen.
Then, as a colleague of Albert Einstein
at Zurich 1913, he got involved with relativity
theory and came to believe (erroneously) that he had found a way to
unite gravity and electromagnetism.
From 1923 to 1938 he concentrated on group
theory and made some important contributions to quantum
mechanics. As the Nazi tide swept over Europe, Weyl came to the United
States and spent the rest of his career at the Institute for Advanced Studies
at Princeton. He said: "My work always tried to unite the truth with the
beautiful, but when I had to choose one or the other, I usually chose the
beautiful."
Related entry
• beauty
and mathematics
Related category
• MATHEMATICIANS
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