Invited to Berlin by Frederick II, Euler published his famous Introductio in analysin infinitorum, devised continuum mechanics, and proposed a pulse theory of light. Petersburg, 1727–41, where he gained a European reputation by solving the Basel problem and systematically developing analytical mechanics. The narrative takes the reader from Euler’s childhood and education in Basel through his first period in St.
It is a story of nearly incessant accomplishment, from Euler’s fundamental contributions to almost every area of pure and applied mathematics-especially calculus, number theory, notation, optics, and celestial, rational, and fluid mechanics-to his advancements in shipbuilding, telescopes, ballistics, cartography, chronology, and music theory. Drawing chiefly on Euler’s massive published works and correspondence, which fill more than eighty volumes so far, this biography sets Euler’s work in its multilayered context-personal, intellectual, institutional, political, cultural, religious, and social. In this comprehensive and authoritative account, Ronald Calinger connects the story of Euler's eventful life to the astonishing achievements that place him in the company of Archimedes, Newton, and Gauss. This is the first full-scale biography of Leonhard Euler (1707–83), one of the greatest mathematicians and theoretical physicists of all time.
