MATHEMATICIAN

John Wallis

1616 - 1703

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John Wallis (; Latin: Wallisius; 3 December [O.S. 23 November] 1616 – 8 November [O.S. 28 October] 1703) was an English clergyman and mathematician, who is given partial credit for the development of infinitesimal calculus. Between 1643 and 1689 Wallis served as chief cryptographer for Parliament and, later, the royal court. He is credited with introducing the symbol ∞ to represent the concept of infinity. He similarly used 1/∞ for an infinitesimal. Read more on Wikipedia

His biography is available in different languages on Wikipedia. John Wallis is the 100th most popular mathematician (up from 108th in 2019), the 490th most popular biography from United Kingdom (down from 462nd in 2019) and the 10th most popular British Mathematician.

John Wallis is most famous for his work in the field of mathematics. His work in the field of mathematics includes inventing the first symbolic method for solving algebraic equations, inventing the first symbolic method for solving cubic equations, and inventing the first symbolic method for solving quartic equations.

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Among MATHEMATICIANS

Among mathematicians, John Wallis ranks 100 out of 1,004. Before him are Frank P. Ramsey, Joan Clarke, L. E. J. Brouwer, Abu al-Wafa' Buzjani, Carl Gustav Jacob Jacobi, and Paul Erdős. After him are Claude Shannon, Felix Klein, Guillaume de l'Hôpital, Adrien-Marie Legendre, Augustus De Morgan, and Anthemius of Tralles.

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Contemporaries

Among people born in 1616, John Wallis ranks 1. After him are Ferdinand Bol, Johann Jakob Froberger, Thomas Bartholin, Carlo Dolci, Shah Shuja, Anna de' Medici, Archduchess of Austria, Anne Gonzaga, Andreas Gryphius, Christina Magdalena of the Palatinate-Zweibrücken, Sébastien Bourdon, and Kuzma Minin. Among people deceased in 1703, John Wallis ranks 5. Before him are Charles Perrault, Robert Hooke, Mustafa II, and Man in the Iron Mask. After him are Vincenzo Viviani, Johann Christoph Bach, Ilona Zrínyi, Samuel Pepys, Erik Dahlbergh, Maria de Dominici, and Nicolas de Grigny.

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In United Kingdom

Among people born in United Kingdom, John Wallis ranks 490 out of 8,785. Before him are Enid Blyton (1897), Martin Ryle (1918), Frances Hodgson Burnett (1849), Alan Ball Jr. (1945), Keir Starmer (1962), and Prince Andrew, Duke of York (1960). After him are Emma Thompson (1959), Offa of Mercia (800), Martin Rees (1942), Bonnie Tyler (1951), Tony Scott (1944), and Ralph Fiennes (1962).

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Among MATHEMATICIANS In United Kingdom

Among mathematicians born in United Kingdom, John Wallis ranks 10. Before him are George Boole (1815), Alfred North Whitehead (1861), John Couch Adams (1819), Thomas Harriot (1560), Frank P. Ramsey (1903), and Joan Clarke (1917). After him are George Green (1793), William Oughtred (1574), Isaac Barrow (1631), G. H. Hardy (1877), Brook Taylor (1685), and Annie S. D. Maunder (1868).

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