Augustus De Morgan's anonymous reviews for The Athenæum: a mirror of a Victorian mathematician (Q286031): Difference between revisions

The Athenæum was a British magazine published in London from 1828 to 1921. One of the most prolific contributors to the journal was the famous mathematician Augustus De Morgan, who was responsible for approximately 1000 book reviews published in the years 1840--1869. Although the reviews were printed anonymously, it is now possible to identify their authors from the extant records. The present paper focuses on selected De Morgan's book reviews, and clearly shows how their author often took the opportunity to express his personal opinions, or to promote his own areas of interest. For example, attention is paid to De Morgan's discoveries in the calculus priority dispute, as well as his critical attitude towards the examination system at British universities. De Morgan's reviews were sharp and witty; this is evident from the passages where he criticizes James Maurice Wilson's new geometry textbook, or when he deals with the attempts of James Smith to square the circle. In the final part of the paper, the authors categorize the books that De Morgan reviewed by their subject. Their classification confirms that De Morgan's interests were not limited to mathematics or science, but included also theology, philosophy, history etc. The article sheds a new light on the personality of Augustus De Morgan. It is very well written and might be of interest to all historians of mathematics.