Amir Alexander is a historian, author, and academic who studies the interconnections between mathematics and its cultural and historical setting.

Early life and education

Born in Rehovot, Israel, he grew up in Jerusalem where his father, Shlomo Alexander, was a professor of physics at the UCLA and the

Hebrew University The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJI; he, הַאוּנִיבֶרְסִיטָה הַעִבְרִית בִּירוּשָׁלַיִם) is a public research university based in Jerusalem, Israel. Co-founded by Albert Einstein and Dr. Chaim Weiz ...

and his mother, Esther Alexander, was an economist and social activist. He obtained a B.S. from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem in 1988 in mathematics and history, before moving to the United States, where he obtained an M.A. in history of science from Stanford University in 1990, and a Ph.D. in history of science from Stanford University in 1996.

Career

His first book, ''Geometrical Landscapes: The Voyages of Discovery and the Transformation of Mathematical Practice'', was published in 2002.Reuben Hersh for The American Scientist. May–June 200
Book Review: In Search of Interior Riches
/ref> The book describes the 17th century English exploration of the Americas, the early exploration by English mathematicians of

infinitesimals In mathematics, an infinitesimal number is a quantity that is closer to zero than any standard real number, but that is not zero. The word ''infinitesimal'' comes from a 17th-century Modern Latin coinage ''infinitesimus'', which originally refer ...

, and the relationship between the two, and argued that "If a strong relationship can be established between an historically specific nonmathematical tale and the narrative of a mathematical work that originated within its social sphere, then mathematics can indeed be said to be fundamentally shaped by its social and cultural setting." His second book, ''Duel at Dawn: Heroes, Martyrs, and the Rise of Modern Mathematics'', was published in 2010.Tony Mann for Times Higher Education. May 6, 201
Book of the Week: Duel at Dawn: Heroes, Martyrs, and the Rise of Modern Mathematics
/ref> The book begins describing the death of Evariste Galois in a duel in 1832 and makes the argument that the ideas and culture of the Romantic age influenced the way mathematicians saw themselves and the very mathematics that they created. His third book, ''Infinitesimal: How a Dangerous Mathematical Theory Shaped the Modern World'' was published in 2014. The book returns to the topic of the history of the study of infinitesimals in the 17th century, and locates arguments about the validity of the mathematical concept in the struggles between Roman Catholics and Protestants in the

Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

and Counter-Reformation and the accompanying political struggles between authoritarian and more pluralistic approaches to governing. ''Infinitesimal'' was selected as one of the best science books of 2014 by '' Library Journal'' and by '' Slate'' magazine. His fourth book, ''Proof!: How the World Became Geometrical'', was published in 2019. Alexander has also contributed pieces to ''The New York Timess Science and Book Reviews sections, ''The Los Angeles Times'' Op-Ed section, and ''Scientific American'', and he has been interviewed on NPR's ''All Things Considered'', and ''Interfaith Voices''.Interfaith Voices
/ref>

Personal life

Amir Alexander lives in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

with his wife and two children. He teaches history at UCLA.Amir Alexander, Adjunct professor
Department of History

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...

References

External links

Faculty website
(UCLA) {{Portal bar, Biography, Israel Historians of mathematics University of California, Los Angeles faculty Hebrew University of Jerusalem alumni Stanford University alumni Living people Scientists from Jerusalem 1963 births People from Rehovot 21st-century Israeli historians 20th-century Israeli male writers 21st-century Israeli male writers Israeli expatriates in the United States

Early life and education

Career

Personal life

See also

References

External links