Julius Plücker

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Julius Plücker

AKA Julius Robert Plücker

Born: 16-Jul-1801 [1]
Birthplace: Wuppertal, Germany
Died: 22-May-1868
Location of death: Bonn, Germany
Cause of death: unspecified
Remains: Buried, Alter Friedhof, Bonn, Germany

Gender: Male
Race or Ethnicity: White
Sexual orientation: Straight
Occupation: Mathematician, Physicist

Nationality: Germany
Executive summary: Analytical geometry

Mathematician and physicist Julius Plücker extended the study of Lamé curves and introduced modern abridged algebraic notation. His name is referenced in Plücker equations on the order and class of a curve, Plücker coordinates in geometry, and Plücker embedding and the Plücker formula in mathematics. With Heinrich Geissler he constructed the first modern luminous gas discharge tubes, researched magnetic effects on the electric discharge in rarefied gases, discovered the fluorescent glow later identified as being caused by cathode rays, and noted how these rays could be controlled. His students included cathode ray physicist Johann Hittorf.

[1] Often cited as 16-Jun-1801, but 16-Jul-1801 is engraved on Plücker's tombstone.

Wife: (married, one son)

High School: Düsseldorf Gymnasium, Düsseldorf, Germany
University: University of Bonn
University: University of Heidelberg
University: University of Berlin
University: Geometry, University of Paris
University: PhD Mathematics, University of Marburg (1823)
Teacher: Mathematics, University of Bonn (1824-28)
Professor: Mathematics, University of Bonn (1828-33)
Professor: Mathematics, University of Berlin (1833-34)
Teacher: Friedrich Wilhelm Gymnasium, Berlin, Germany (1833-34)
Professor: Mathematics, University of Halle (1834-36)
Professor: Mathematics, University of Bonn (1936-47)
Professor: Physics, University of Bonn (1947-68)

Copley Medal 1866
Royal Society 1855
French Ancestry
German Ancestry

Author of books:
Analytisch-Geometrische Entwickelungen (Developments in Analytical Geometry) (1828)
System der Analytischen Geometrie (System of Analytical Geometry) (1835)
Theorie der Algebraischen Kurven (Theory of Algebraic Curves) (1839)
Neue Geometrie des Raumes (New Geometry of Space) (1868)

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