Self-Taught Mathematicians: Famous Examples & How To Learn

Yes, there are many self-taught mathematicians throughout history who have made incredible contributions to the field. Here are some notable examples:

1. Srinivasa Ramanujan: A self-taught Indian mathematician who made significant contributions to mathematical analysis, number theory, and infinite series.

2. Leonardo Fibonacci: A self-taught Italian mathematician who introduced the Hindu-Arabic numeral system to Europe and discovered the Fibonacci sequence.

3. Pierre-Simon Laplace: A self-taught French mathematician who made important contributions to the fields of probability theory, astronomy, and mechanics.

4. John Napier: A self-taught Scottish mathematician who invented logarithms and introduced the use of decimal points in mathematics.

5. ￉variste Galois: A self-taught French mathematician who made significant contributions to algebra and group theory before dying at a young age in a duel.

6. Maryam Mirzakhani: A self-taught Iranian mathematician who was the first woman to receive the Fields Medal, the highest honor in mathematics, for her work on the geometry of moduli space.

7. Terence Tao: A self-taught Australian mathematician who became the youngest person ever to be promoted to full professor at UCLA and has made important contributions to many areas of mathematics, including number theory and partial differential equations.

These individuals demonstrate the power of self-directed learning and the potential for anyone to achieve greatness in mathematics, regardless of their formal education.