Mathematicians Fleeing from Nazi Germany : Individual Fates and Global Impact

The emigration of mathematicians from Europe during the Nazi era signaled an irrevocable and important historical shift for the international mathematics world. Mathematicians Fleeing from Nazi Germany is the first thoroughly documented account of this exodus. In this greatly expanded translation of the 1998 German edition, Reinhard Siegmund-Schultze describes the flight of more than 140 mathematicians, their reasons for leaving, the political and economic issues involved, the reception of these emigrants by various countries, and the emigrants' continuing contributions to mathematics. The influx of these brilliant thinkers to other nations profoundly reconfigured the mathematics world and vaulted the United States into a new leadership role in mathematics research. Based on archival sources that have never been examined before, the book discusses the preeminent emigrant mathematicians of the period, including Emmy Noether, John von Neumann, Hermann Weyl, and many others. The author explores the mechanisms of the expulsion of mathematicians from Germany, the emigrants' acculturation to their new host countries, and the fates of those mathematicians forced to stay behind. The book reveals the alienation and solidarity of the emigrants, and investigates the global development of mathematics as a consequence of their radical migration. An in-depth yet accessible look at mathematics both as a scientific enterprise and human endeavor, Mathematicians Fleeing from Nazi Germany provides a vivid picture of a critical chapter in the history of international science..

Intro -- Cover -- Title Page -- Copyright -- Contents -- Figures and Tables -- Preface -- Chapter 1 - The Terms "German-Speaking Mathematician," "Forced," and "Voluntary Emigration" -- Chapter 2 - The Notion of "Mathematician" Plus Quantitative Figures on Persecution -- Chapter 3 - Early Emigration -- 3.1. The Push-Factor -- 3.2. The Pull-Factor -- 3.D. Documents -- 3.D.1. The Economic Troubles in German Science as a Stimulus to Emigration -- 3.D.2. National Isolation, Xenophobia, and Anti-Semitism as European Phenomena -- 3.D.3. Personal Risks with Early Emigration -- 3.D.4. The Ambiguous Interconnection between Social Hierarchies, Traditions at Home, and Internationalization in Mathematics -- 3.D.5. The American Interest in Immigration (Pull-Factor) -- 3.D.6. The Start of Economic Problems in America around 1930 Foreshadowing Later Problems Incurred during Forced Emigration -- 3.S. Case Studies -- 3.S.1. The Failed Appointments of C. Carathéodory and S. Bochner at Harvard -- 3.S.2. Early Emigration from Austria as Exemplified by Karl Menger -- 3.S.3. The Problems of Early Emigration as Exemplified by Hermann Weyl -- Chapter 4 - Pretexts, Forms, and the Extent of Emigration and Persecution -- 4.1. The Nazi Policy of Expulsion -- 4.2. The Political Position of Mathematicians, Affected and Unaffected by Persecution -- 4.D. Documents -- 4.D.1. The Pseudo-Legalism of the Methods of Expulsion -- 4.D.2. Student Boycotts as a Means of Expelling Unwanted Docents -- 4.D.3. The Racist "German Mathematics" (Deutsche Mathematik) of Ludwig Bieberbach as an Ideology Supportive of the Expulsions -- 4.D.4. Personal Denunciations as Instruments of Expulsion -- 4.D.5. Political Reasons for Emigration beyond Anti-Semitism -- 4.D.6. Cheating Emigrants out of Their Pensions -- 4.D.7. Increasing Restrictions Imposed upon "Non-Aryan" Students..

Medienart:	E-Book

Erscheinungsjahr:	2009 ©2009.
Erschienen:	Princeton: Princeton University Press ; 2009 ©2009.

Weitere Ausgaben:	Erscheint auch als Druck-Ausgabe: Mathematicians fleeing from Nazi Germany

Sprache:	Englisch

Beteiligte Personen:	Siegmund-Schultze, Reinhard, 1953- [VerfasserIn]

Links:	Volltext [lizenzpflichtig] Zentralblatt MATH

ISBN:	978-1-4008-3140-1

BKL:

31.01 / Geschichte der Mathematik 15.43 / Deutsche Geschichte des 19. Jahrhunderts bis zur Gegenwart

Themen:

Österreich Deutsche Deutschland Electronic books Exil Flüchtling Germans ; United States ; History ; 20th century Germany Geschichte 1933-1945 Immigrants ; United States ; History ; 20th century Mathematicians ; Germany ; Biography Mathematicians ; Germany ; History ; 20th century Mathematicians ; United States ; Biography Mathematicians ; United States ; History ; 20th century Mathematiker Mathematikerin USA World War, 1939-1945 ; Refugees ; Germany

RVK:	RVK Klassifikation SG 580

Anmerkungen:	Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources

Umfang:	1 online resource (480 pages)

Förderinstitution / Projekttitel:

PPN (Katalog-ID):	1658225252