Johann Bernoulli’s family was very smart when it came to math. His father wanted him to go to school for business because he thought his son would take over the family spice business. Instead, Johann chose to study medicine. His interest in medicine started to fade while he was in school, and he started to learn from his older brother, Jacob. Jacob was twelve years older than Johann. He was studying calculus, which was a newer field, and he told Johann what he had learned. The brothers wrote letters to each other about what they had learned. This is how the word “integral” came to be used in math. But jealousy started to drive them apart when Johann talked to Leibniz, a famous mathematician of the time, without including his brother. Johann felt betrayed when Guillaume de l’Hopital, one of his students, published some of the work that he and his brother had been working on. He was hurt, but he got back up and started teaching math at the “University of Basel,” taking over his brother’s old job. In the years after that, he wrote a lot of math papers and helped Leibniz argue against Newton and his theory of gravity. He let jealousy get in the way of a family relationship again when he copied his son’s math paper. During his life, Johann Bernoulli was invited to join many academies.
Childhood and Adolescence
Nicolaus Bernoulli and Margeretha Schonauer were his parents. Nicolaus desired that pursue a business degree so that he could continue the family spice business. He went to ‘Basel University to study medicine in 1683, against his father’s objections. He did, however, grow to dislike medicine.
Outside of school, he studied mathematics with his older brother Jacob. They concentrated on infinitesimal calculus and were the first to fully investigate the subject.
Their friendship deteriorated quickly after the younger brother graduated from college. Although historians prefer to go with Jacob, the older brother, both claimed to have discovered the word ‘integral’ in reference to math.
Johann Bernoulli’s Career
He began teaching at the University of Groningen in 1694, but after nine years there, his father-in-law encouraged him to return to his hometown of Basel.
When he consented to educate Guillaume de l’Hopital in 1696, he sparked controversy. l’Hopital released a calculus textbook called ‘l’Hopital’s Rule,’ copying all of Bernoulli’s ideas – but Bernoulli couldn’t do anything because he had signed a contract allowing the hospital to utilize his discoveries.
He proved the ‘Sophomore’s dream,’ an important mathematical theorem that is still used today, a year later, in 1697.
In 1969, he suggested the ‘Brachistorchone’ problem, which Newton, Leibniz, the hospital, and his brother Jacob later solved. The goal was to create a wire that would allow a ball to travel down it as quickly as feasible.
He found out in 1705 that Jacob had died of TB. He was able to replace his brother as a mathematics professor at ‘Basel University.’
In 1713, he took part in the Newton-Leibniz argument, claiming that Leibniz should be credited with the development of the calculus because his method was more effective in addressing specific problems.
Later, he argued against Newton’s theory of gravity, delaying the theory’s acceptance across Europe.
He produced a paper in 1726 based on a two-year-old competition sponsored by the ‘French Academy of Science.’ His paper on the motion was judged legitimate even though he did not win the competition.
In 1738, he faced off against his own son, Daniel, in an attempt to publish a paper on hydrodynamics in the same year. To beat the competition, the father dated his article two years ahead of the actual publication date.
Achievements and Awards
In Paris, Berlin, St. Petersburg, London, and many other cities, he was inducted into the ‘Academy of Science.’
Personal History and Legacy
He married Dorothea Falkner in 1694. She was the daughter of a Basel Alderman, and she had three children with him: Nicolaus II, Daniel, and Johann II.
He reportedly ejected his son Daniel from his home after the son won a mathematical award in a tournament in which they both competed.
When he died in 1748, he was renowned as the ‘Archimedes of his age,’ and he loved the moniker so much that he had it written on his headstone.
Throughout his life, he authored numerous outstanding papers and mathematical texts, as well as an autobiography.
He was well known for tutoring Leonhard Euler, who went on to write over 900 mathematical publications during his career.
Estimated Net worth
Johann is one of the wealthiest mathematicians and is on the list of the most well-known mathematicians. Wikipedia, Forbes, and Business Insider all say that Johann Bernoulli has a net worth of about $250 million.
Trivia
This well-known figure was the one who got his own son, Daniel, kicked out of the ‘Academy of Science.’ Historians theorize that this was due to envy.
This famous mathematician is admired for writing nearly 3,000 letters during his lifetime.
Major Projects
In 1697, he uncovered the ‘Sophomore’s dream,’ which was actually an altered version of the ‘Freshman’s dream.’
In 1713, he took a stand against Newton’s theory of gravity, which turned out to be the wrong move.