Emmy Noether and the
Fundamental Theorem of Arithmetic
What: Bi-State Colloquium
When: Wednesday, March 5, 4pm
Where: Loras College, Hennessy 250
Who: Jessica Williams
At a time when it was widely believed
that mixed-sex education would
“overthrow all academic order,” Emmy
Noether refused to be dissuaded from
pursuing, side-by-side with the boys, a
mathematics education at Germany’s
major universities. Despite many
prejudices and obstacles put in her
way, Emmy studied mathematics under several famous
mathematicians, went on to teach the subject, and eventually made
several important contributions to the fields of abstract algebra and
physics. She has been described as the most important woman in the
history of mathematics, and we will explore her story.
Among Noether’s contributions is a theorem that generalizes the wellknown fundamental theorem of arithmetic. We will discuss this
connection and proceed to work through the statement and proof of
this elementary – but crucial – description of how integers factor into
primes.
Jessica Williams is a graduate student at the University of Iowa.