Gösta Mittag-Leffler (eBook)

Arild Stubhaug is an acclaimed poet and biographer. Born in 1948 in Naustdal, Norway, he holds university degrees in mathematics, literature, and the history of religion. He has also been awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Oslo. He made his literary debut in 1970 with a poetry book, and he has since published numerous collections of poetry and other important literary works. His biography Niels Henrik Abel and His Times: Called Too Soon from Flames Afar (published in English by Springer-Verlag, 2000) won the prestigious Brage Prize in Norway in 1996. This was followed by two other major works: The Mathematician Sophus Lie: It Was the Audacity of My Thinking (also published in English by Springer-Verlag, 2002), and a biography of the Norwegian writer Conrad Nicolai Schwach.

Contents 6
Illustrations 9
Prelude 11
Journey at the Turn of the Century 12
The House in Djursholm 32
Family and Childhood 47
Leffler and Mittag 48
Gösta's Parents 52
The Teacher's Family in Stockholm 59
Four Years at Stockholm Gymnasium 67
Studies 79
First Semester in Uppsala 80
Festivities and Student Drills 89
Summer on the West Coast 95
The Aristocracy of Lennartsnäs 99
Controversy over the Academic Degree Regulations 108
His Sister's Debut and His Father's Illness 115
First Trip Abroad 123
The Stablemaster at Övrejärva 130
Doctoral Degree 134
Docent in Uppsala 139
A Turning Point 145
With a Room in Paris 149
In Göttingen 168
With a Base in Berlin 182
Traveling to Helsingfors 198
In the Finnish Capital 201
Waiting Time 212
Professor, Husband, and Entrepreneur 219
Installation in Helsingfors, Anniversary Celebration in Uppsala 220
In "The Land Called Suomi" 231
First Encounter with Italy 242
Meeting Signe 246
Acta Mathematica 258
Wedding and Honeymoon 270
New Roles in Stockholm 275
Acta and the College 283
Sonya K. and the "Brilliant" Life 289
Winter Travels 308
Summer in Switzerland 311
Strife in the Academy of Sciences 316
Rector of the College 322
Social Entertainments Abound 332
A Terrible Summer 341
Involved in All Manner of Things 345
Traveling to Algeria 351
Meeting in Wernigerode 355
A New Shift in Stockholm 361
King Oscar's Prize 364
New Efforts on Sonya's Behalf 368
Fame, Friends, and Enemies 375
Construction in Djursholm 376
Sonya's Death 381
Life Goes On - I 389
Donation to the College 394
Business Affairs, Birth and Death 396
Life Goes On - II 401
Battlefields 406
Celebrating His 50th Birthday 412
Seeking a "Practical, Useful Result" 415
A Marriage Teetering on the Brink 418
One Thing After Another 424
On the Verge of Bankruptcy 430
Celebrating Niels Henrik Abel 438
Two Funerals 449
The Nobel Prizes, Another Battle 457
The Almanac Dispute 462
Signe's Inheritance 473
Political Ambitions and Huge Business Ventures 481
Celebrating His 60th Birthday 492
King Oscar's Death 498
More Celebrations and More Disputes 507
The Big Poincaré Campaign 516
From Dreams of Power to Resignation 526
A New Home in the Dalarna Region 527
Travels, Congresses, Prizes 534
The Case Against Prime Minister Staaff 542
World War, Writing His Will and Testament 549
Establishment of a Mathematics Institute 561
International Cooperation After the War 571
Signe's Death 586
Still on the Move 605
New Travels and Financial Setbacks 614
Last Years 625
Chronology 638
Academic and Professional Honors 642
Mathematics Publications 644
Non-mathematics Publications 650
Sources 654
Notes 657
Acknowledgments 676
Bibliography 678
Index of Names 684