Charles Bossut (11 August 1730 – 14 January 1814) was a French

mathematician A mathematician is someone who uses an extensive knowledge of mathematics in their work, typically to solve mathematical problems. Mathematicians are concerned with numbers, data, quantity, mathematical structure, structure, space, Mathematica ...

and ''confrère'' of the Encyclopaedists.

Early life and education

Bossut was born in 1730 in Tartaras,

Loire The Loire ( , , ; ; ; ; ) is the longest river in France and the 171st longest in the world. With a length of , it drains , more than a fifth of France's land, while its average discharge is only half that of the Rhône. It rises in the so ...

to Barthélemy Bossut and Jeanne Thonnerine. He lost his father early in life and was raised by his uncle. He received his education at the Jesuit College of Lyon from age fourteen, under the influence of Père Béraud, who also mentored

s such as Montucla and

Jérôme Lalande Joseph Jérôme Lefrançois de Lalande (; 11 July 1732 – 4April 1807) was a French astronomer, freemason and writer. He is known for having estimated a precise value of the astronomical unit (the distance from the Earth to the Sun) using measu ...

Career

After completing his studies, Bossut followed a path in the Church, becoming known as Abbé Charles Bossut. He delved into mathematical research, collaborating with contemporaries such as

Jean le Rond d'Alembert Jean-Baptiste le Rond d'Alembert ( ; ; 16 November 1717 – 29 October 1783) was a French mathematician, mechanician, physicist, philosopher, and music theorist. Until 1759 he was, together with Denis Diderot, a co-editor of the ''Encyclopé ...

Alexis Clairaut Alexis Claude Clairaut (; ; 13 May 1713 – 17 May 1765) was a French mathematician, astronomer, and geophysicist. He was a prominent Newtonian whose work helped to establish the validity of the principles and results that Isaac Newton, Sir Isaa ...

, and Charles Étienne Louis Camus. In 1753, he became a correspondant at the French Academy of Sciences. By the age of 21, he was appointed professor of mathematics at the École du Génie in Mézières, where he enhanced the course quality and taught future mathematicians, including Jean-Charles de Borda and

Charles-Augustin de Coulomb Charles-Augustin de Coulomb ( ; ; 14 June 1736 – 23 August 1806) was a French officer, engineer, and physicist. He is best known as the eponymous discoverer of what is now called Coulomb's law, the description of the electrostatic force of att ...

. Bossut's research in

mechanics Mechanics () is the area of physics concerned with the relationships between force, matter, and motion among Physical object, physical objects. Forces applied to objects may result in Displacement (vector), displacements, which are changes of ...

and resistance to

planetary motion In celestial mechanics, an orbit (also known as orbital revolution) is the curved trajectory of an object such as the trajectory of a planet around a star, or of a natural satellite around a planet, or of an artificial satellite around an ...

earned recognition from the

French Academy of Sciences The French Academy of Sciences (, ) is a learned society, founded in 1666 by Louis XIV at the suggestion of Jean-Baptiste Colbert, to encourage and protect the spirit of French Scientific method, scientific research. It was at the forefron ...

, resulting in multiple Grand Prix awards. He played a pivotal role in guiding

Gaspard Monge Gaspard Monge, Comte de Péluse (; 9 May 1746 – 28 July 1818) was a French mathematician, commonly presented as the inventor of descriptive geometry, (the mathematical basis of) technical drawing, and the father of differential geometry. Dur ...

's career, who later succeeded him at Mézières. In the 1760s, Bossut authored textbooks, notably ''Traité élémentaire de mécanique'' (1763) and ''Cours complet de mathématiques'' (1765). He also served as an examiner at Mézières and later at the École Polytechnique. In 1774, Bossut was appointed to a newly established chair of

hydrodynamics In physics, physical chemistry and engineering, fluid dynamics is a subdiscipline of fluid mechanics that describes the flow of fluids – liquids and gases. It has several subdisciplines, including (the study of air and other gases in ...

at the Louvre, a position he held until 1780. During this time, he conducted fluid resistance experiments and edited an edition of Pascal's works. Bossut's later works include contributing to Diderot's ''Encyclopédie méthodique'' and publishing ''Mécanique en général'' (1792) and ''Essai sur l'histoire générale des mathématiques'' (1802). In his later years, Bossut became reclusive and remained unmarried. Nonetheless, he received accolades from several scientific academies, including those in Lyon, Toulouse, St Petersburg, Turin, and Bologna, for his contributions to mathematics.

Works

* ''Traité élémentaire d'hydrodynamique'' (1771) later reworked as ''Traité théorique et expérimental d'hydrodynamique'' (1786–87) * ''Traité élémentaire de méchanique statique'' (1772) * * * ''Cours de mathématiques'' (1781) * ''Histoire générale des mathématiques'' (1810) Did write parts of the

Encyclopédie , better known as ''Encyclopédie'' (), was a general encyclopedia published in France between 1751 and 1772, with later supplements, revised editions, and translations. It had many writers, known as the Encyclopédistes. It was edited by Denis ...

on mathematics with

. 1768 member of Académie des sciences

References

External links

* 1730 births 1814 deaths People from Loire (department) 18th-century French mathematicians 19th-century French mathematicians French textbook writers Members of the French Academy of Sciences Members of the Göttingen Academy of Sciences and Humanities {{France-mathematician-stub

Early life and education

Career

Works

See also

References

External links