Evariste Galois was born in 1811 By the age of 15, he was reading the original papers in mathematics.
In 1828, he attempted the entrance examination for the École Polytechnique, the most prestigious institution for mathematics in France at the time, and failed for lack of explanations in the oral examination.
In the following year Galois' first paper, was published. It was at around the same time that he began making fundamental discoveries in the theory of polynomial equations.
Having been denied admission to the Polytechnique, Galois took the Baccalaureate examinations in order to enter the École Normale. He passed, receiving his degree in 1829. His examiner in mathematics reported, "This pupil is sometimes obscure in expressing his ideas, but he is intelligent and shows a remarkable spirit of research."
Galois published three papers in 1830, one of which laid the foundations for a branch of mathematics named after him: Galois theory.
Galois became involved in the political turmoil in France at the time and was actually arrested and imprisoned for a while. He died at the age of 20 as a result of a duel. However despite his brief life he made very significant contributions to the world of mathematics   Back To Listing