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Mathematical Treasure: Hadamard’s Calculus of Variations

Author(s): 
Frank J. Swetz (The Pennsylvania State University)

Jacques Hadamard (1865-1963) was a talented and prolific French mathematician who made many contributions to mathematics, particularly in the field of number theory. His Leçons sur le calcul des variations (1910) helped lay the foundations of functional analysis.

Title page of Leçons sur le calcul des variations by Jacques Hadamard, 1910

Hadamard’s opening comments supply background for his study.

First page of Foreward to Leçons sur le calcul des variations by Jacques Hadamard, 1910

Second page of Foreward to Leçons sur le calcul des variations by Jacques Hadamard, 1910

These images were obtained through the courtesy of the University of California’s Digital Library. The book may be viewed in its entirety in the Internet Archive.

Index to Mathematical Treasures

Frank J. Swetz (The Pennsylvania State University), "Mathematical Treasure: Hadamard’s Calculus of Variations," Convergence (March 2018)