Pia Maria Nalli (10 February 1886 – 27 September 1964) was an Italian mathematician known for her work on the summability of
Fourier series
A Fourier series () is a summation of harmonically related sinusoidal functions, also known as components or harmonics. The result of the summation is a periodic function whose functional form is determined by the choices of cycle length (or ''p ...
, on Morera's theorem for analytic functions of several variables and for finding the solution to the Fredholm integral equation of the third kind for the first time. Her research interests ranged from
algebraic geometry
Algebraic geometry is a branch of mathematics, classically studying zeros of multivariate polynomials. Modern algebraic geometry is based on the use of abstract algebraic techniques, mainly from commutative algebra, for solving geometrical ...
International Congress of Mathematicians
The International Congress of Mathematicians (ICM) is the largest conference for the topic of mathematics. It meets once every four years, hosted by the International Mathematical Union (IMU).
The Fields Medals, the Nevanlinna Prize (to be rename ...
.
She is also remembered for her struggles against discrimination against women in the Italian university hiring system. A street in Rome is named after her.
Life and academic career
Early life and education
Nalli was born on February 10, 1886, in
Palermo
Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan ...
, to a middle-class family with seven children.. She studied at the University of Palermo, where she obtained a laurea in 1910 under the supervision of Giuseppe Bagnera, with a thesis concerning
algebraic geometry
Algebraic geometry is a branch of mathematics, classically studying zeros of multivariate polynomials. Modern algebraic geometry is based on the use of abstract algebraic techniques, mainly from commutative algebra, for solving geometrical ...
, and in the same year joined the
Circolo Matematico di Palermo The Circolo Matematico di Palermo (Mathematical Circle of Palermo) is an Italian List of mathematical societies, mathematical society, founded in Palermo by Sicilian geometer Giovanni Battista Guccia, Giovanni B. Guccia in 1884.
After finishing her studies, Nalli assisted Bagnera in Palermo in 1911 and then began working as a school teacher. She completed a
habilitation
Habilitation is the highest university degree, or the procedure by which it is achieved, in many European countries. The candidate fulfills a university's set criteria of excellence in research, teaching and further education, usually including a ...
thesis in 1914 on the theory of integrals, and continued to work on
Fourier analysis
In mathematics, Fourier analysis () is the study of the way general functions may be represented or approximated by sums of simpler trigonometric functions. Fourier analysis grew from the study of Fourier series, and is named after Josep ...
University of Cagliari
The University of Cagliari ( it, UniversitĂ degli Studi di Cagliari) is a university in Cagliari, Sardinia, Italy. It was founded in 1606 and is organized in 11 faculties.
History
The ''Studium Generalis Kalaritanum'' was founded in 1606 alon ...
. She had been ranked second to
Mauro Picone
Mauro Picone (2 May 1885 – 11 April 1977) was an Italian mathematician. He is known for the Picone identity, the Sturm-Picone comparison theorem and being the founder of the Istituto per le Applicazioni del Calcolo, presently named after hi ...
in the competition for the position, possibly in part because she was female, but Picone chose to stay at the University of Catania and become head of mathematics there, so the Cagliari position fell to Nalli. In 1923, she was listed first in a search for a position at the University of Pavia, but not offered the position. Finally, after similar mistreatment from several other universities, she moved to the University of Catania as a full professor in 1927. At around this time, perhaps encouraged by Tullio Levi-Civita, she switched her research focus from functional analysis to tensor calculus.
She was an
invited speaker at the International Congress of Mathematicians
This is a list of International Congresses of Mathematicians Plenary and Invited Speakers. Being invited to talk at an International Congress of Mathematicians has been called "the equivalent, in this community, of an induction to a hall of fame." ...
in 1928.
Death and legacy
Nalli died on 27 September 1964, in Catania. A street in Rome, the Via Pia Nalli, is named after her.
Selected works
Pia Nalli published 61 mathematical works, including the monograph and a textbook.According to the list of her works included in . Her "Selected works" include this monograph plus eleven articles on topics mainly belonging to
functional
Functional may refer to:
* Movements in architecture:
** Functionalism (architecture)
** Form follows function
* Functional group, combination of atoms within molecules
* Medical conditions without currently visible organic basis:
** Functional sy ...
and mathematical analysis: the following list includes also her doctoral thesis and other works on tensor calculus
*.
*.
*.
*.
*.
*.
Notes
References
Biographical and general references
*.
*.
*.
Scientific references
*. A survey paper describing the development of
infinitesimal calculus
Calculus, originally called infinitesimal calculus or "the calculus of infinitesimals", is the mathematical study of continuous change, in the same way that geometry is the study of shape, and algebra is the study of generalizations of arithm ...
during the twentieth century and trying to trace possible scenarios for its future evolution.
*. A survey paper describing the development of mathematical analysis in Italy during the two world wars, describing the contributions of several Italian scientists who worked during that period.