Ross Honsberger (1929–2016) was a Canadian mathematician and author on

recreational mathematics Recreational mathematics is mathematics carried out for recreation (entertainment) rather than as a strictly research-and-application-based professional activity or as a part of a student's formal education. Although it is not necessarily limited ...

Life

Honsberger studied mathematics at the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

, with a bachelor's degree, and then worked for ten years as a teacher in Toronto, before continuing his studies at the

University of Waterloo The University of Waterloo (UWaterloo, UW, or Waterloo) is a Public university, public research university located in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is on of land adjacent to uptown Waterloo and Waterloo Park. The university also op ...

(master's degree). Since 1964 he had been on the faculty of mathematics, where he later became a professor emeritus. He dealt with

combinatorics Combinatorics is an area of mathematics primarily concerned with counting, both as a means and as an end to obtaining results, and certain properties of finite structures. It is closely related to many other areas of mathematics and has many ...

and

optimization Mathematical optimization (alternatively spelled ''optimisation'') or mathematical programming is the selection of a best element, with regard to some criteria, from some set of available alternatives. It is generally divided into two subfiel ...

, especially with

mathematics education In contemporary education, mathematics education—known in Europe as the didactics or pedagogy of mathematics—is the practice of teaching, learning, and carrying out Scholarly method, scholarly research into the transfer of mathematical know ...

. He developed education courses, for example, on

combinatorial geometry Discrete geometry and combinatorial geometry are branches of geometry that study combinatorial properties and constructive methods of discrete geometric objects. Most questions in discrete geometry involve finite or discrete sets of basic geom ...

, frequently held lectures for students and math teachers, and was editor of the ''Ontario Secondary School Mathematics Bulletin''. He wrote numerous books on elementary mathematics (

geometry Geometry (; ) is a branch of mathematics concerned with properties of space such as the distance, shape, size, and relative position of figures. Geometry is, along with arithmetic, one of the oldest branches of mathematics. A mathematician w ...

number theory Number theory is a branch of pure mathematics devoted primarily to the study of the integers and arithmetic functions. Number theorists study prime numbers as well as the properties of mathematical objects constructed from integers (for example ...

probability theory Probability theory or probability calculus is the branch of mathematics concerned with probability. Although there are several different probability interpretations, probability theory treats the concept in a rigorous mathematical manner by expre ...

), and

(often at the

Mathematical Association of America The Mathematical Association of America (MAA) is a professional society that focuses on mathematics accessible at the undergraduate level. Members include university A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary edu ...

, MAA), with him in his own words using the book by

Hans Rademacher Hans Adolph Rademacher (; 3 April 1892 – 7 February 1969) was a German-born American mathematician, known for work in mathematical analysis and number theory. Biography Rademacher received his Ph.D. in 1916 from Georg-August-Universität Göt ...

and

Otto Toeplitz Otto Toeplitz (1 August 1881 – 15 February 1940) was a German mathematician working in functional analysis., reprinted in Life and work Toeplitz was born to a Jewish family of mathematicians. Both his father and grandfather were ''Gymnasiu ...

of numbers and figures as a model. Frequent were his expositions of problems at the

International Mathematical Olympiad The International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO) is a mathematical olympiad for pre-university students, and is the oldest of the International Science Olympiads. It is widely regarded as the most prestigious mathematical competition in the wor ...

s and other competitions.

Edsger W. Dijkstra Edsger Wybe Dijkstra ( ; ; 11 May 1930 – 6 August 2002) was a Dutch computer scientist, programmer, software engineer, mathematician, and science essayist. Born in Rotterdam in the Netherlands, Dijkstra studied mathematics and physics and the ...

called his ''Mathematical Gems'' "delightful".

Books

* ''Ingenuity in Mathematics'',

New Mathematical Library The School Mathematics Study Group (SMSG) was an American academic think tank focused on the subject of reform in mathematics education. Directed by Edward G. Begle and financed by the National Science Foundation, the group was created in 1958 i ...

, Random House / Singer 1970 * ''Mathematical Gems'', MAA 1973, 2003 (Mathematical Expositions Dolciani Vol.1), German Mathematical gems of elementary combinatorics, number theory and geometry, Wiley, 1990, , Chapter "The Story of Louis Posa". * ''Mathematical Gems 2'', MAA 1975 (Vol.2 Dolciani Mathematical Expositions) * ''Mathematical Gems 3'', MAA 1985, 1991 (vol.9 Dolciani Mathematical Expositions) * ''Mathematical Morsels'', MAA 1978 (Vol.3 Dolciani Mathematical Expositions) * ''More Mathematical Morsels'', MAA 1991 (Dolciani Bd.10 Mathematical Expositions) * ''Mathematical Plums'', MAA 1979 (vol.4 Dolciani Mathematical Expositions) * ''Mathematical Chestnuts from around the world'', MAA 2001 (Dolciani Bd.24 Mathematical Expositions) * ''Mathematical Diamonds'', MAA 2003 * ''In Pólya's Footsteps'', MAA 1997 (Dolciani Bd.19 Mathematical Expositions) * ''Episodes in nineteenth and twentieth century euclidean geometry'', MAA 1995 * ''From Erdos to Kiev – Problems of Olympiad Caliber'', MAA 1997 * ''Mathematical Delights'', MAA 2004 (Dolciani Mathematics Expositions Bd.28)

References

External links

Ross Honsberger
at a website of the

{{DEFAULTSORT:Honsberger, Ross 1929 births Canadian mathematicians Recreational mathematicians Mathematics popularizers Scientists from Toronto University of Toronto alumni 2016 deaths Academic staff of the University of Waterloo