MacTutor
Mathematicians Of The Day
29th July
On this day in 1808, François Arago escaped from prison in Mallorca where he had been imprisoned as a spy, and started his journey back to France carrying his logbook of measurements of the meridian. After some misadventures he reached France 11 months later.
Click on Ⓟ for a poster.
Born:
- 1786: Jean-Nicolas Nicollet Ⓟ
- 1858: Francesco Gerbaldi
- 1912: Noel Slater Ⓟ
- 1920: Alison Falconer Ⓟ
- 1923: Zofia Szmydt Ⓟ
Died:
- 1839: Gaspard de Prony Ⓟ
- 1944: David Eugene Smith Ⓟ
- 1962: R A Fisher Ⓟ
- 1996: Marcel-Paul Schützenberger Ⓟ
- 1999: Pedro Abellanas Ⓟ
- 2004: Walter Feit Ⓟ
- 2016: Jock Hoe Ⓟ
Quotation of the day
From R A Fisher
No isolated experiment, however significant in itself, can suffice for the experimental demonstration of any natural phenomenon; for the "one chance in a million" will undoubtedly occur, with no less and no more than its appropriate frequency, however surprised we may be that it should occur to us.
