A Brain on Fire: James Joseph Sylvester

Those who value the versatility of their computers and tablets, who rely on encryption to keep their data confidential and who speculate how quantum states in physics are calculated might be unaware of the man whose work made all these advances possible. James Joseph Sylvester, who lived against the backdrop of the radical social changes of the 19th century, coined the terms ‘invariant’ (describing mathematical characteristics that do not change under transformations), ‘matrix’ and other mathematical terms. He developed matrix algebra and made significant advances in number theory and many branches of mathematics. His ambition seems modest by today’s standards; he wanted to be a professional mathematician. He wished to have time to use his creative mind, to be able to teach in a stimulating environment and to live as a gentleman.