Godofredo García (born in

Lima, Peru Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of t ...

, November 8, 1888 - July 16, 1970) was a

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

vian

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, structure, space, models, and change. History On ...

and

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the l ...

. He was the author of more than 80 publications covering

mathematics Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...

physics Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge which r ...

astronomy Astronomy () is a natural science that studies astronomical object, celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and chronology of the Universe, evolution. Objects of interest ...

astrophysics Astrophysics is a science that employs the methods and principles of physics and chemistry in the study of astronomical objects and phenomena. As one of the founders of the discipline said, Astrophysics "seeks to ascertain the nature of the h ...

, and

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...

Background

He studied at the Colegio de Lima, under Pedro A. Labarthe. In 1906 he entered the Faculty of Sciences of the National University of San Marcos, where he received a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

(1909) and later his doctorate degree in Mathematical Sciences (1912), with his thesis on "Singular points of flat curves" and "Resistance of Columns of reinforced concrete", respectively. Simultaneously, he studied at the School of Engineers of Peru, now called the

National University of Engineering The National University of Engineering ( es, Universidad Nacional de Ingeniería, UNI) is a public engineering and science university located in the Rímac District of Lima, Peru. History The National University of Engineering was founded in 1 ...

(1908-1910), graduating from

Civil engineer A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering – the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructure while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing ...

in 1911. From 1912, he taught at the Chorrillos Military School, where he was in charge of the courses of Flat, Descriptive and Analytical Geometry,

Infinitesimal Calculus Calculus, originally called infinitesimal calculus or "the calculus of infinitesimals", is the mathematical study of continuous change, in the same way that geometry is the study of shape, and algebra is the study of generalizations of arithm ...

, Rational Mechanics and Exterior Ballistics. He was also professor of Rational Mechanics in the Faculty of Sciences of the

University of San Marcos The National University of San Marcos ( es, Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, link=no, UNMSM) is a public research university located in Lima, the capital of Peru. It is considered the most important, recognized and representative educ ...

beginning in 1919 and later served as dean (1928-1940). He became Rector (1941-1943). He was also a professor at the School of Engineers corresponding with

Albert Einstein Albert Einstein ( ; ; 14 March 1879 – 18 April 1955) was a German-born theoretical physicist, widely acknowledged to be one of the greatest and most influential physicists of all time. Einstein is best known for developing the theory ...

. In the 1920s he worked with the Polish mathematician

Alfred Rosenblatt Alfred may refer to: Arts and entertainment *''Alfred J. Kwak'', Dutch-German-Japanese anime television series *Alfred (Arne opera), ''Alfred'' (Arne opera), a 1740 masque by Thomas Arne *Alfred (Dvořák), ''Alfred'' (Dvořák), an 1870 opera ...

in San Marcos. In 1938, together with Rosenblatt and other San Marcos mathematicians, he founded the National Academy of Exact, Physical and Natural Sciences of Peru, an institution that he presided over from 1960 until he died in 1970. He also directed the publication Actas de la Academia". He was awarded the national prize for scientific research, in recognition of his contributions in the field of mathematical sciences and his "Exact equations and exact solutions to the movement and stresses of viscous fluids" (1948). He organized conferences in Lima with the participation of

Tullio Levi-Civita Tullio Levi-Civita, (, ; 29 March 1873 – 29 December 1941) was an Italian mathematician, most famous for his work on absolute differential calculus (tensor calculus) and its applications to the theory of relativity, but who also made significa ...

Arthur Compton Arthur Holly Compton (September 10, 1892 – March 15, 1962) was an American physicist who won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1927 for his 1923 discovery of the Compton effect, which demonstrated the particle nature of electromagnetic radia ...

and Garret Birkhoff, among others. In each conference Godofredo García presented a review of the work of these scientists. He married Alicia Rendón (Ecuadorian) and fathered four children.

Bibliography

*Lessons of Rational Mechanics, UNMSM; 1937. *On a New Cosmogonic Theory, 1940. *Algebraic Analysis, Ed. Sanmarti, 1955.

References

* Carranza, César. “La Matemática en el Perú”. Discurso pronunciado en XXIII Coloquio Nacional de Matemática, Lambayeque, 2004. * Samamé Boggio, Mario: “Godofredo García Díaz”, pg.71-81 de ''Hacer ciencia en el Perú. Biografías de ocho científicos''. Lima, 1990. * Tauro del Pino, Alberto (2001): ''Enciclopedia Ilustrada del Perú''. Tercera Edición. Tomo 7. FER/GUZ. Lima, PEISA. People from Lima National University of San Marcos alumni National University of San Marcos faculty 1970 deaths 1888 births Peruvian mathematicians {{peru-engineer-stub