Henri Fehr Explained

Henri Fehr (Zurich, 2 February 1870 – Geneva, 2 November 1954) was a Swiss mathematician. He was the founder of the Foundation for the Advancement of Mathematical Sciences, of the journal "Commentarii Mathematici Helvetici" and of the journal "L'Enseignement mathématique" along with Charles-Ange Laisant.^[1] Fehr's interests in mathematics were scientific and social as is demonstrated by his involvement in academic life, committees for the improvement of mathematical instruction, education of teachers and internationalization of mathematics.^[2]

He studied in Switzerland and in France. His doctoral dissertation was about the method of Grassmann vectors applied to differential geometry.

Fehr was professor of the University of Geneva and later dean, vice-rector and rector. He was considered an pedagogue with an interest for the social aspects of the mathematics community and for the academic life.

He was an Invited Speaker at the ICM in 1904 in Heidelberg,^[3] in 1908 in Rome, in 1912 in Cambridge, England,^[4] in 1924 in Toronto,^[5] and in 1932 in Zürich.

Publications

• Book: Application de la méthode vectorielle de Grassman à la géométrie infinitésmale. 1899. Paris. G. Carré & C. Naud. ^[6] 2nd ed. 1907.
• with Théodore Flournoy and Édouard Claparède: Book: Enquête sur on la methode de travail des mathématiciens. 1908. Paris. Gauthier-Villars. ^[7]
• Book: Mathematische Unterricht in der Schweiz. 1910. Geneva. A. Kündig.

External links

• • Fonds Henri Fehr, Bibliothèque de Genève, Catalogue des manuscrits

Notes and References

1. Ziwet, Alexander. Review of the first issue of L'Enseignement mathématique. Bull. Amer. Math. Soc.. 1899. 5. 5. 264–265. 10.1090/s0002-9904-1899-00610-4. free.
2. Web site: ACTGE . 2011-10-18.
3. Fehr, Henri. L'enquête de „L'Enseignement Mathématique“ sur la méthode de travail des mathématiciens. Proceedings of the ICM, 1908
4. Fehr, Henri. La Commission Internationale de L'Enseignement Mathématique de 1908 à 1912. Proceedings of the ICM, 1912 v. 2
5. Book: Fehr, Henri. L'Université et la préparation des professeurs de mathématiques. In: Proceedings of the International Congress of Mathematicians in Toronto, August 11–16. 1924. 2. 987.
6. Wilson, E. B.. Edwin Bidwell Wilson. Review: Application de la Méthode Vectorielle de Grassman à la Géométrie Infinitésmale, by Henri Fehr. Bull. Amer. Math. Soc.. 1901. 7. 5. 231–233. 10.1090/s0002-9904-1901-00790-2. free.
7. Archibald, R. C.. Raymond Clare Archibald. Review of L'enquête de "L'Enseignement Mathématique" sur la méthode de travail des mathématiciens by Fehr, Flournoy & Claparède and 2 publications on H. Poincaré by Ernest Lebon. Bull. Amer. Math. Soc.. 1915. 22. 3. 125–136. 10.1090/s0002-9904-1915-02738-2. free.