German mathematician and mathematics educator Felix Klein was born #OTD in 1849.
He is best known for his substantial contributions to group theory, complex analysis, non-Euclidean geometry, and for connecting mathematics with other disciplines, notably physics. His notable achievements are the Erlangen Program, Complex Analysis and Algebraic Geometry, Klein Bottle, and Klein's Quartic Curve.
"The proof that π is a transcental number will forerver mark an epoch in mathematical science. It gives the final answer to the problem of squaring the circle and settles this vexed question once for all. This problem requires to derive the number π by a finite number of elementary geometrical processes, i.e. with the use of the ruler and compasses alone."
Lectures on Mathematics delivered from Aug. 28 to Sept. 9, 1893 at Northwestern University, p. 52.
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