The Greatest Mathematician Who Ever Lived

Chapters
00:00 The Most Mathematical Child Who Ever Lived
0:43 Carl's Early Education and Genius Revealed
1:36 Self-Taught Scholar
2:53 The Revolutionary Discovery of Non-Euclidean Geometry
4:06 The Duke’s Patronage and Academic Success
5:04 Solving the Mystery of His Birthday
6:19 Revolutionary Impact of Disquisitiones Arithmeticae (Arithmetical Investigations)
7:12 Gauss Predicts Planet Ceres
7:58 Gauss Falls in Love
9:08 The Duke's Dies and Gauss' New Path
11:04 Finding Love Again
11:54 Mapping the Kingdom of Hanover
13:23 The Earth's Magnetism
14:21 Carl Gauss’s Legacy
15:05 Today’s Sponsor: Brilliant

Sources:
Lüneburg Heath (in order of appearance):

[Newsthink]

@4:44 When you're explaining Gauss's groundbreaking math but can't pick the right compass...TOTAL brain fart

[jonjosenna]

Gauss and Euler carried the frontier of Mathematics on their shoulders for
about a century.

[zamplify]

Bro made a candle out of a potato so he could do algebra in the dark

[guslevy]

My math teacher in HS told me the story of Gauss adding the numbers 1-100 using his simple observation…and I thought that’s exactly what genius is.

[douglasstrother]

Leonhard Euler (April 15, 1707 — September 18, 1783) and Carl Gauss (April 30, 1777 — February 23, 1855) were Mathematical Monsters!

[commentjudger]

I like how he says, "if anyone would think about math as deeply as I, they would discover these things too" but he told his son who clearly wanted to get right into math, he doesn't have the aptitude 🤣

[bouipozz]

I wish that we learned the history of science and mathematics in school, rather than just military and political. These people are the true champions of humanity.

[amarug]

Having done a LOT of math in the past few decades, Gauss surely stands out as one of the greatest. But I must say, in my opinion, looking back, Euler just takes the cake - clearly. To me his body of work is just absolutely mind-blowing. His reach and variety is just almost infinite - and he never stopped. During a time when people died young, he was still pumping out quality work into his 70s. If I have to pick a favourite of their work, to me Gauss is easy, the Theorema Egregium is really remarkable. When it comes to Euler, I could not even know where to start. Probably 100 times I just sat there and was in awe how he managed to dream these things up. It just feels like they may have had the same intellect, but Eulers imagination stretched quite a bit farther. There was just no limit to where he could go. He lives in a league of his own - there will never be another like him. There is a reason where there are like a million constants, identities, formulas, equations etc named after him. He was the one and only god-king. Just my thoughts.

[Loots]

im a 3rd year math major and the majority of everything ive learned come from gauss, bernoulli or newton

[mdb]

Gauss and Euler the greatest mathematicians of the last 300 years.

[stefanc]

Gauss is a perfect example of why society needs to elevate EVERYONE because you never know who's going to be a game changer!

[sungyun]

Carl Friedrich Gauss, often called the "Prince of Mathematicians, " was a true pioneer in science and mathematics. His groundbreaking contributions to number theory, geometry, and analysis laid the foundation for many modern advancements. Beyond mathematics, his work in physics, astronomy, and geodesy showcased his versatility and genius. Gauss's ability to solve complex problems with elegance continues to inspire mathematicians and scientists worldwide. His life is a shining example of how curiosity and intellect can drive humanity forward, leaving an enduring legacy of brilliance and innovation that shapes our world to this day.

[troylhester]

Your compassionate relating of real humans doing amazing things in science is very much appreciated.

[batboy-wbcn]

when I grew up in Germany he was on German bills. just found out how much of a genius he was much later, but so proud as a follow German.

[jerzypawlowski]

One of the most amazing contributions of Gauss to science was non-Euclidean geometry.
Non-Euclidean geometry describes spaces with curvature, like the surface of a sphere.
Gauss had the insight that space may be curved, and even conducted experiments to find out.
Einstein much later used non-Euclidean geometry for his theory of General Relativity, which states that gravity is caused by the curvature of space-time.
Gauss's intuition that space may be curved was pure genius!

[williamgarner]

Gauss was incredible! One thing I learned about his family was that he only has a handful of descendents in Germany but hundreds in America. His son Eugen that he did not think highly of prospered and had many children, grandchildren, etc.

[ericpmoss]

This is why we need guaranteed public education, even at college level -- we should not let genius like his be at the mercy of finding a rich person who cares about it.

[Dan_Campbell]

My idol. Many of my passwords refer to Gauss in one form or another.

[Ukie]

Poor father probably thought it was all magic in Carl’s mind.

[arcturus]

Gauss is what happens when huge talent and opportunity mix while sustained by hard work fueled by genuine passion. Many have the talent but lack opportunity. Others have both but lose passion and burn out. Many have passion but even hard work can't compensate for their lack of natural talent. Gauss just steamrolled through all of these variables.