Edward Begle
| Edward G. Begle | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
November 27, 1914 Saginaw, Michigan |
| Died | March 2, 1978 (aged 63) Palo Alto, California |
| Fields | mathematics |
| Institutions | School Mathematics Study Group |
| Alma mater | University of Michigan |
| Thesis | Locally Connected Spaces and Generalized Manifolds (1940) |
| Doctoral advisor | Solomon Lefschetz |
Edward Griffith Begle (November 27, 1914 – March 2, 1978) was a mathematician best known for his role as the director of the School Mathematics Study Group (SMSG), the primary group credited for developing what came to be known as The New Math. Begle was a topologist and a researcher in mathematics education who served as a member of the faculty of Stanford University, Princeton University, The University of Michigan, and Yale University. Begle was also elected as the secretary of the American Mathematical Society in 1951, and he held the position for 6 years.
Edward G. Begle was born November 27, 1914 in Saginaw, Michigan. Studying at the University of Michigan, Begle earned his A.B. in Mathematics in 1936 and his M.A. in 1938. Begle's early academic work was in the field of topology, which is where he earned his Ph.D. at Princeton, studying under Solomon Lefschetz in 1940. While Begle's contributions to the field of mathematical research are limited, among them is the first proof of the Vietoris theorem, which caused it to become commonly known as the Vietoris–Begle mapping theorem.
Begle departed Princeton a year after completing his doctorate to spend a year as a Fellow of the National Research Council, after which he joined the faculty of Yale in 1942. Begle's interest in mathematics education is apparent in his early mathematics texts, where the writing departs from the tradition at the time of writing textbooks addressed to accomplished mathematicians. Instead, Begle's introductory mathematics texts actually address freshman mathematicians, a revolutionary concept in teaching math. As Begle's stature increased as an educator within the field of mathematics, he gained notice within his field and was elected secretary of the American Mathematical Society in 1951.
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