Home > John Charles Fields

Born in Hamilton, Ontario to a leather shop owner, Fields graduated from the Hamilton Collegiate Institute in 1880 and University of Toronto in 18841884 is a leap year starting on Tuesday (click on link to calendar). Events January 4 The Fabian Society is founded in London. February 1 Edition one of the Oxford English Dictionary is published. March 13 The siege of Khartoum, Sudan begins (ends on Janu before leaving for the United StatesThe United States of America also referred to as the United States U. America ¹ or the States is a federal republic in central North America, stretching from the Atlantic in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west. It shares land borders with Canada in to study at Johns Hopkins UniversityThe Johns Hopkins University is a prestigious private institution of higher learning located in Baltimore, Maryland. Hopkins holds many "firsts" in American education: it was the first university in the United States to put an emphasis on research, founde in BaltimoreThis article is about the city in the US state of Maryland. For other meanings of the word "Baltimore", please see: Baltimore (disambiguation Baltimore is an independent city located in the U. State of Maryland. As of July 1, 2002, the population is 638,6, MarylandAlternate uses: Maryland (disambiguation Maryland ( In Detail) State nickname: Old Line State; Free State Governor: Robert L. Ehrlich Other U. States Capital Annapolis Largest City Baltimore Area Total Land Water % water Ranked 42nd 32,160 km² 25,338 km². Fields received his Ph.D. in 18871887 is a common year starting on Saturday (click on link for calendar). Events January 20 The United States Senate allows the Navy to lease Pearl Harbor as a naval base. January 21 The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) is formed January 26 Battle of Dogali: A. His thesis, entitled Symbolic Finite Solutions and Solutions by Definite Integrals of the Equation dⁿy/dxⁿ = x^my, was published in the American Journal of Mathematics in 18861886 is a common year starting on Friday (click on link to calendar) Events January 18 Modern field hockey is born with the formation of The Hockey Association in England. January 29 Karl Benz patents the first successful gasoline-driven automobile. March.

Fields taught for two years at Johns Hopkins before joining the faculty of Allegheny College in Meadville, Pennsylvania. Disillusioned with the state of mathematical research in North America at the time, he left for Europe to in 1891, locating primarily in Berlin, Göttingen and Paris, where he associated with some of the greatest mathematical minds of the time, including Karl Weierstrass, Felix Klein, Ferdinand Georg Frobenius and Max Planck. Fields also began a friendship with Gösta Mittag-Leffler , which would endure their lifetimes. Fields began publishing papers on a new topic, algebraic functions , which would prove to be the most fruitful research field of his career.

Fields returned to Canada in 1902 to lecture at the University of Toronto. Back in the country of his birth, Fields worked tirelessly to raise the stature of mathematics within academic and public circles. He successfully lobbied the Ontario Legislature for an annual research grant of $75,000 to U of T and helped establish the National Research Council, a predecessor to the National Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada , and Ontario Research Foundation . Fields served as President of the Royal Canadian Institute from 1919 until 1925, during which time he aspired to mold the institute into a leading centre of scientific research, although with mixed success. His efforts, however, were pivotal in ensuring Toronto be the location of the 1924 International Congress of Mathematicians.

Fields is best known for his development of the Fields Medal, which is considered by some to be the Nobel Prize in Mathematics, although there are differences between the awards. First awarded in 1936, the medal was reintroduced in 1950 and has been awarded every four years since. It is awarded to two to four mathematicians, under the age of 40, who have made important contributions to the field.

Fields began planning the award in the late 1920s but, due to deteriorating health, never saw the implementation of the medal in his lifetime. He passed away on August 9, 1932 after a three-month illness; in his will, he left $47,000 for the Fields Medal fund.

Fields was elected fellow of the Royal Society of Canada in 1907 and fellow of the Royal Society of London in 1913.