George Boole
Geb.: 2 Nov 1815 in Lincoln, Lincolnshire, England
Gest.: 8 Dec 1864 in Ballintemple, County Cork, Irland
Boole reduced logic to a simple algebra. He also worked on differential equations, the calculus of finite differences and general methods in probability.George Boole first attended a school in Lincoln, then a commercial school. His early instruction in mathematics, however, was from his father who also gave George a liking for constructing optical instruments. George's interests turned to languages and he received instruction in Latin from a local bookseller.
By the age of 12 George had become so skilled in Latin that it provoked an argument. He translated an ode by the Latin poet Horace which his father was so proud of that he had it published. However the talent was such that a local schoolmaster disputed that any 12 year old could have written with such depth.
Boole did not study for an academic degree, but from the age of 16 he was an assistant school teacher. He maintained his interest in languages and intended to enter the Church. From 1835, however, he seems to have changed his mind for he opened his own school and began to study mathematics on his own. He was later to realise that he had almost wasted five years in trying to teach himself the subject instead of having a skilled teacher.
At this time Boole studied the works of Laplace and Lagrange, making notes which would later be the basis for his first mathematics paper. However he did receive encouragement from Duncan Gregory who at this time was in Cambridge and the editor of the recently founded Cambridge Mathematical Journal.
Boole was unable to take Duncan Gregory's advice and study courses at Cambridge as he required the income from his school to look after his parents. However he began publishing in the Cambridge Mathematical Journal. and his interests were also influenced by Duncan Gregory as he began to study algebra. An application of algebraic methods to the solution of differential equations was published by Boole in the Transactions of the Royal Society and for this work he received the Society's Royal Medal. His mathematical work was beginning to bring him fame.
Boole was appointed to the chair of mathematics at Queens College, Cork in 1849. He taught there for the rest of his life, gaining a reputation as an outstanding and dedicated teacher.
In 1854 he published An investigation into the Laws of Thought, on Which are founded the Mathematical Theories of Logic and Probabilities. Boole approached logic in a new way reducing it to a simple algebra, incorporating logic into mathematics. He pointed out the analogy between algebraic symbols and those that represent logical forms. It began the algebra of logic called Boolean algebra which now finds application in computer construction, switching circuits etc.
Boole also worked on differential equations, the influential Treatise on Differential Equations appeared in 1859, the calculus of finite differences, Treatise on the Calculus of Finite Differences (1860), and general methods in probability. He published around 50 papers and was one of the first to investigate the basic properties of numbers, such as the distributive property, that underlie the subject of algebra.
Many honours were given to Boole as the genius in his work was recognised. He received honorary degrees from the universities of Dublin and Oxford and was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society (1857). However his career, which was started rather late, came to an unfortunately early end when he died at the age of 49. The circumstances are described by Macfarlane in [8] as follows:
One day in 1864 he walked from his residence to the College, a distance of two miles, in the drenching rain, and lectured in wet clothes. The result was a feverish cold which soon fell upon his lungs and terminated his career ... .What Macfarlane fails to say is that Boole's wife (Mary - niece of Sir George Everest, after whom the mountain is named) believed that a remedy should resemble the cause. She put Boole to bed and threw buckets of water over the bed since his illness had been caused by getting wet.
Hirst described Boole as:
... evidently an earnest able and at the same time a genial man.His work was praised by De Morgan who said:
Boole's system of logic is but one of many proofs of genius and patience combined. ... That the symbolic processes of algebra, invented as tools of numerical calculation, should be competent to express every act of thought, and to furnish the grammar and dictionary of an all-containing system of logic, would not have been believed until it was proved. When Hobbes ... published his "Computation or Logique" he had a remote glimpse of some of the points which are placed in the light of day by Mr Boole.Boolean algebra has wide applications in telephone switching and the design of modern computers. Boole's work has to be seen as a fundamental step in today's computer revolution.
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