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Born on 23 March 1882, Emmy Noether, considered by Einstein the most important woman in history of mathematics, had a great passion for theoretical physics and abstract algebra.
She made many relevant contributions to the field of mathematics.
In 1915, Noether accepted an invitation from Hilbert and Klein to move to Göttingen, the "Mecca of Mathematics."
Many of the faculty did not want her there, but she worked hard and soon was given a job as a lecturer.
Even though she still was not paid for her efforts, for the first time, Noether was teaching under her own name.
Three years later, she began receiving a small salary for her work.
There she became a world-class algebraist who attracted students and younger colleagues who themselves became leading mathematicians.
In fact, during her time at the University of Göttingen, Emmy accumulated a small following of students known as "Noether's boys".
In 1933, Hitler and the Nazis came into power in Germany.
Noether moved to the USA, where Bryn Mawr College offered her a position teaching. There she taught until her death in 1935, being an inspiring teacher for her students.
"In the judgment of the most competent living mathematicians, Fräulein Noether was the most significant creative mathematical genius thus far produced since the higher education of women began. In the realm of algebra, in which the most gifted mathematicians have been busy for centuries, she discovered methods which have proved of enormous importance in the development of the present-day younger generation of mathematicians. Pure mathematics is, in its way, the poetry of logical ideas. One seeks the most general ideas of operation which will bring together in simple, logical and unified form the largest possible circle of formal relationships. In this effort toward logical beauty spiritual formulas are discovered necessary for the deeper penetration into the laws of nature."
- Albert Einstein, Princeton University, May 1,1935 (Source)
Emmy discovered the symmetries of a physical system are inextricably linked to physical quantities that are conserved, such as energy. These ideas became known as Noether’s theorem, the foundations of modern physics.
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References
Celebrate the mathematics of Emmy Noether
Emmy Noether, Mentors & Colleagues
Image: Portrait of Emmy Noether, before 1910 (Public Domain)
Author: unknown
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