Hubert Stanley Wall
Encyclopedia
Hubert Stanley Wall
was an American mathematician
who worked primarily in the field of continued fraction
s. He is also known as one of the leading proponents of the Moore method
of teaching.
on December 2, 1902. He received the Bachelor of Arts
and Master of Arts
degrees from Cornell College
in Mount Vernon, Iowa
in 1924. He received his Ph.D.
degree from the University of Wisconsin (now University of Wisconsin–Madison
) in 1927.
Wall joined the faculty at Northwestern University
and stayed until 1944 except for the academic year 1938–1939 when he was at the Institute for Advanced Study
. He then went to the Illinois Institute of Technology
for two years before moving in 1946 to the University of Texas where he spent the rest of his career. He became an emeritus professor in 1970.
Most of Wall's mathematical research was in various aspects of the analytic theory of continued fractions. This included the theory of positive-definite continued fractions, convergence results for continued fractions, parabola theorems, Hausdorff moments, and Hausdorff summability. He studied the polynomials now named Wall polynomials after him.
While at Northwestern he started a collaboration with Ernst Hellinger
, and he was very interested in Hellinger integral
s throughout his career, but did publish anything on them.
While at Texas Wall was a prominent practitioner of the Moore method
of teaching. Parker wrote, "Wall had long ago thrown himself wholeheartedly into the Moore tradition, with his own interpretation of the Moore method, and there was a good deal of cross pollination of students through their courses, some steered to the PhD by Moore and others by Wall and Ettlinger. Between them, they continued to dominate PhD guidance in Pure Mathematics throughout the 1950s and 1960s." The University of Texas memorial to Wall suggests that he may have picked up some of these ideas at Northwestern
from Van Vleck
and Hellinger
and says, "Since there were already people on the Texas faculty who had used innovative techniques (chiefly Robert Lee Moore
and some of his colleagues), Wall tried their methods. For him and for his students it was an unqualified success."
Wall died in Austin
on September 12, 1971.
was an American mathematician
Mathematician
A mathematician is a person whose primary area of study is the field of mathematics. Mathematicians are concerned with quantity, structure, space, and change....
who worked primarily in the field of continued fraction
Continued fraction
In mathematics, a continued fraction is an expression obtained through an iterative process of representing a number as the sum of its integer part and the reciprocal of another number, then writing this other number as the sum of its integer part and another reciprocal, and so on...
s. He is also known as one of the leading proponents of the Moore method
Moore method
The Moore method is a deductive manner of instruction used in advanced mathematics courses. It is named after Robert Lee Moore, a famous topologist who first used a stronger version of the method at the University of Pennsylvania when he began teaching there in 1911.The way the course is conducted...
of teaching.
Early life and education
Wall was born in Rockwell City, IowaRockwell City, Iowa
Rockwell City is a city in Calhoun County, Iowa, United States. The population was 2,264 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Calhoun County.-Geography:Rockwell City is located at ....
on December 2, 1902. He received the Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
and Master of Arts
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
degrees from Cornell College
Cornell College
Cornell College is a private liberal arts college in Mount Vernon, Iowa. Originally called the Iowa Conference Seminary, the school was founded in 1853 by Reverend Samuel M. Fellows...
in Mount Vernon, Iowa
Mount Vernon, Iowa
Mount Vernon is a city in Linn County, Iowa, United States, adjacent to the city of Lisbon. The city's population was 3,390 when the 2000 census figures were released, but that number was later revised to 3,808 because the Census Bureau had incorrectly reported that 418 residents of a Cornell...
in 1924. He received his Ph.D.
Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
degree from the University of Wisconsin (now University of Wisconsin–Madison
University of Wisconsin–Madison
The University of Wisconsin–Madison is a public research university located in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1848, UW–Madison is the flagship campus of the University of Wisconsin System. It became a land-grant institution in 1866...
) in 1927.
Career
Upon receiving his Ph.D.Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
Wall joined the faculty at Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
and stayed until 1944 except for the academic year 1938–1939 when he was at the Institute for Advanced Study
Institute for Advanced Study
The Institute for Advanced Study, located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States, is an independent postgraduate center for theoretical research and intellectual inquiry. It was founded in 1930 by Abraham Flexner...
. He then went to the Illinois Institute of Technology
Illinois Institute of Technology
Illinois Institute of Technology, commonly called Illinois Tech or IIT, is a private Ph.D.-granting university located in Chicago, Illinois, with programs in engineering, science, psychology, architecture, business, communications, industrial technology, information technology, design, and law...
for two years before moving in 1946 to the University of Texas where he spent the rest of his career. He became an emeritus professor in 1970.
Most of Wall's mathematical research was in various aspects of the analytic theory of continued fractions. This included the theory of positive-definite continued fractions, convergence results for continued fractions, parabola theorems, Hausdorff moments, and Hausdorff summability. He studied the polynomials now named Wall polynomials after him.
While at Northwestern he started a collaboration with Ernst Hellinger
Ernst Hellinger
Ernst David Hellinger was a German mathematician.-Early years:Ernst Hellinger was born on September 30, 1883 in Striegau, Silesia, Germany to Emil and Julie Hellinger. He grew up in Breslau, attended school and graduated from the Gymnasium there in 1902...
, and he was very interested in Hellinger integral
Hellinger integral
In mathematics, the Hellinger integral is an integral introduced by that is a special case of the Kolmogorov integral. It is used to define the Hellinger distance in probability theory.-References:...
s throughout his career, but did publish anything on them.
While at Texas Wall was a prominent practitioner of the Moore method
Moore method
The Moore method is a deductive manner of instruction used in advanced mathematics courses. It is named after Robert Lee Moore, a famous topologist who first used a stronger version of the method at the University of Pennsylvania when he began teaching there in 1911.The way the course is conducted...
of teaching. Parker wrote, "Wall had long ago thrown himself wholeheartedly into the Moore tradition, with his own interpretation of the Moore method, and there was a good deal of cross pollination of students through their courses, some steered to the PhD by Moore and others by Wall and Ettlinger. Between them, they continued to dominate PhD guidance in Pure Mathematics throughout the 1950s and 1960s." The University of Texas memorial to Wall suggests that he may have picked up some of these ideas at Northwestern
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
from Van Vleck
Edward Burr Van Vleck
Edward Burr Van Vleck was an American mathematician.The son of astronomer John Monroe Van Vleck, he graduated from Wesleyan University in 1884, attended Johns Hopkins in 1885-87, and studied at Göttingen...
and Hellinger
Ernst Hellinger
Ernst David Hellinger was a German mathematician.-Early years:Ernst Hellinger was born on September 30, 1883 in Striegau, Silesia, Germany to Emil and Julie Hellinger. He grew up in Breslau, attended school and graduated from the Gymnasium there in 1902...
and says, "Since there were already people on the Texas faculty who had used innovative techniques (chiefly Robert Lee Moore
Robert Lee Moore
Robert Lee Moore was an American mathematician, known for his work in general topology and the Moore method of teaching university mathematics.-Life:...
and some of his colleagues), Wall tried their methods. For him and for his students it was an unqualified success."
Wall died in Austin
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
on September 12, 1971.