Joseph-Diez Gergonne in Montpellier: around a collection of unpublished manuscripts

Exhibition organized by the BIU's Service du Patrimoine Ecrit et Graphique, BU Sciences' heritage collection

Date: September 5 to October 6, 2016
Hours: Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Location: BU Sciences lobby
Contact:biu-patrimoine-busciences@umontpellier.fr

This exhibition retraces the Montpellier career of this extraordinary figure, remembered as the founder of the Annales de mathématiques pures et appliquées, the first mathematical periodical in the contemporary sense of the term. He left his mark on local history as holder of the chair of astronomy at Montpellier's Faculty of Science, becoming Dean from 1820 to 1830 and then Rector of the Academy, without giving up his university lectures.

This exhibition was organized at the request of the organizing committee of the" History and Pedagogy of Mathematics" international congress held in Montpellier from July 18 to 22, 2016.

Christian Gerini, professor at the University of Toulon and Gergonne's official biographer, provided scientific support for the exhibition, and will be giving a talk on the subject on Monday July 18 at 5:30 pm, open to the general public. The UM's Department of Scientific Culture and Historical Heritage is also lending the portrait of Gergonne (classified as a historical monument).

The BIU's Heritage Department has also digitized the entire Gergonne collection, enabling researchers to deepen their knowledge of Gergonne's pedagogy. A summary of the exhibition has been published in the conference proceedings.