Alfred Tarski (January 14, 1901, Warsaw (then Imperial Russia, today Poland) – October 26, 1983, Berkeley, California) was a logician and mathematician of considerable philosophical importance. A brilliant member of the interwar Warsaw School of Mathematics and active in the USA after 1939, he wrote on topology, geometry, measure theory, mathematical logic, set theory, metamathematics, and most of all, on model theory, abstract algebra, and algebraic logic. His biographers Anita Feferman and Solomon Feferman (2004) wrote that he was "one of the greatest logicians of all time", and that, "Along with his contemporary, Kurt Gödel, he changed the face of logic in the twentieth century, especially through his work on the concept of truth and the theory of models".

Life

---

Alfred Tarski was born Alfred Teitelbaum (Polish spelling: Tajtelbaum), to parents who were Polish Jews in comfortable circumstances. His mother, Rosa Prussak, is considered responsible for his later brilliance. Tarski first revealed his mathematical abilities while at Warsaw's Schola Mazowiecka, an unusually good secondary school for his place and time. Nevertheless, in 1918 he entered the University of Warsaw intending to study biology.

In 1919, Poland regained its independence for the first time since 1795, and the University of Warsaw became a Polish university for the first time in generations. Under the leadership of Jan Łukasiewicz, Stanisław Leśniewski, and Wacław Sierpiński, the university immediately became a world leader in logic, foundational mathematics, the philosophy of mathematics, and analytic and linguistic philosophy. At the University of Warsaw, Tarski had a fateful encounter with Leśniewski, who discovered Tarski's genius and persuaded him to abandon biology for mathematics. Henceforth, Tarski attended courses taught by Łukasiewicz, Sierpiński, Stefan Mazurkiewicz, and Tadeusz Kotarbiński, and became the only person ever to complete a Ph.D. under Leśniewski's supervision. Tarski and Leśniewski soon grew cool to each other; in later life, Tarski reserved his warmest praise for Tadeusz Kotarbiński.

More on [ Alfred Tarski ]

Wiley: All New Mathematics & Statistics Titles

Loss Models: From Data to Decisions, Solutions Manual, 3rd Edition
Stuart A. Klugman, Harry H. Panjer, Gordon E. Willmot Mon, 25 Aug 2008 04:00:00 -0000
  Loss Models: From Data to Decisions, Third Edition has been thoroughly revised and updated to include new material related to Exam C (old Exam 4) of the Society of Actuaries' accreditation program. Terms are defined when they are first introduced, and a solid background in mathematical sciences (including calculus) is recommended. Companion software, datasets, and over 400 sample test exercises, Read More...
Solved Problems in Geostatistics
Oy Leuangthong, K. Daniel Khan, Clayton V. Deutsch Mon, 25 Aug 2008 04:00:00 -0000
  Solved Problems in Geostatistics brings together exercises and projects that demonstrate key principles and build strong bridges between theory and practice. Each chapter focuses on a comprehensive topic with examples and problems for a technologically evolving audience. Problems in each chapter are classified as analytical, numerical, or practical; exercises are identified as foundational, advanced, Read More...
Practical Text Mining with Perl
Roger Bilisoly Mon, 18 Aug 2008 04:00:00 -0000
  Provides readers with the methods, algorithms, and means to perform text mining tasks This book is devoted to the fundamentals of text mining using Perl, an open-source programming tool that is freely available via the Internet (www.perl.org). It covers mining ideas from several perspectives--statistics, data mining, linguistics, and information retrieval--and provides readers with the means to successfully complete text mining tasks on their Read More...
Loss Models: From Data to Decisions, 3rd Edition Set
Stuart A. Klugman, Harry H. Panjer, Gordon E. Willmot Fri, 15 Aug 2008 04:00:00 -0000
This set contains: 9780470187814 Loss Models: From Data to Decisions, 3rd Edition and the 9780470385715 3rd Edition Solutions Manual by Stuart A. Klugman, Harry H. Panjer, Gordon E. Willmot. Read More...
Statistical Meta-Analysis with Applications
Joachim Hartung, Guido Knapp, Bimal K. Sinha Mon, 11 Aug 2008 04:00:00 -0000
  * This book combines the authors' experiences on the topic and brings out a wealth of new information relevant to the study of meta-analysis. * Most of the methods described in this book can be understood and applied with a solid master's level background in statistics. * Applications ranging from business to education to environment to health sciences in both univariate and multivariate cases are presented alongside and subservient to theory. Read More...
Fundamentals of Queueing Theory, 4th Edition
Donald Gross, John F. Shortle, James M. Thompson, Carl M. Harris Mon, 11 Aug 2008 04:00:00 -0000
  Fundamentals of Queueing Theory, 4th Edition presents the analytic modeling of queues using up-to-date examples and detailed coverage of the fundamentals of analytic modeling. A fresh emphasis on telecommunications enlivens the text, and spreadsheet programs for Excel and Quattro on the related Web site will help you understand the sensitivity of waiting-line systems to parameter and environmental changes. Read More...

Subscribe to Math RSS feed