Jakow Trachtenberg
Encyclopedia
Jakow Trachtenberg was a Russia
n Jewish mathematician
who developed the mental calculation
techniques called the Trachtenberg system
. He was born in Odessa
, in the Russian Empire
(today Ukraine
). He graduated with highest honors from the Mining Engineering Institute in St. Petersburg
and later worked as an engineer in the Obukhov arms factory. While still in his early twenties, he became Chief Engineer with 11,000 men under his supervision. The Tsarist government gave him the responsibility of supervising the formation of a well-developed navy
.
After the Russian Revolutions of 1917, Trachtenberg fled to Germany
where he became critical of Nazi policies. He was imprisoned in a Nazi concentration camp during World War II
. He developed his system of mental arithmetic
during his imprisonment. He later fled to Switzerland.
. When war broke out in 1914 he was instrumental in organising a society known as the Society of Good Samaritans. The idea was to train Russian students to take care of the wounded. This also had a special recognition from the Czar. He was against violence of any sort, despite having a leading position in Tsarist arms production. He refused to accept defeat even under trying conditions.
government was in power, the ex-Tsar (who had been deposed in the February Revolution) and some of his family were executed. Trachtenberg was very critical of the new government, and felt that he was in danger.
Disguising himself he escaped to Berlin
which became his new home. He worked as an editor for a magazine publishing company advocating a peaceful future. He was regarded as an expert on Russia
n affairs and wrote a book on Russian industry
. When fascism
came to power under Hitler, Trachtenberg criticized the Nazis from a pacifist perspective. Fearing that the regime was after him he escaped with his wife to Vienna
in Austria
. There he worked for a scientific magazine.
After the Anschluss
, Trachtenberg was captured and sent to prison
. From there he escaped and fled with his wife to what became Yugoslavia
where he lived incognito. This was only short-lived as the Nazis caught him and transported him to a concentration camp.
He diverted his attention to think on manipulation of number
s to forget the ruthlessness he witnessed in the concentration camp. Without any paper or pencil he worked mentally and only scribbled the final results on any bit of paper he could lay hands on.
In 1944, after almost seven years in prison
, when he learned that he was to be executed, his wife bribed the guards and got him transferred to another prison from where he escaped and fled with his wife. Again he was caught and sent to another prison from where he escaped to Switzerland
with the help of his wife who pawned her jewelry to bribe the guards.
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n Jewish 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 developed the mental calculation
Mental calculation
Mental calculation comprises arithmetical calculations using only the human brain, with no help from calculators, computers, or pen and paper. People use mental calculation when computing tools are not available, when it is faster than other means of calculation , or in a competition context...
techniques called the Trachtenberg system
Trachtenberg system
The Trachtenberg System is a system of rapid mental calculation. The system consists of a number of readily memorized operations that allow one to perform arithmetic computations very quickly. It was developed by the Jewish engineer Jakow Trachtenberg in order to keep his mind occupied while being...
. He was born in Odessa
Odessa
Odessa or Odesa is the administrative center of the Odessa Oblast located in southern Ukraine. The city is a major seaport located on the northwest shore of the Black Sea and the fourth largest city in Ukraine with a population of 1,029,000 .The predecessor of Odessa, a small Tatar settlement,...
, in the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
(today Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
). He graduated with highest honors from the Mining Engineering Institute in St. Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
and later worked as an engineer in the Obukhov arms factory. While still in his early twenties, he became Chief Engineer with 11,000 men under his supervision. The Tsarist government gave him the responsibility of supervising the formation of a well-developed navy
Navy
A navy is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake- or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions...
.
After the Russian Revolutions of 1917, Trachtenberg fled to Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
where he became critical of Nazi policies. He was imprisoned in a Nazi concentration camp during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. He developed his system of mental arithmetic
Mental calculation
Mental calculation comprises arithmetical calculations using only the human brain, with no help from calculators, computers, or pen and paper. People use mental calculation when computing tools are not available, when it is faster than other means of calculation , or in a competition context...
during his imprisonment. He later fled to Switzerland.
Early life
Trachtenberg was a dedicated pacifistPacifism
Pacifism is the opposition to war and violence. The term "pacifism" was coined by the French peace campaignerÉmile Arnaud and adopted by other peace activists at the tenth Universal Peace Congress inGlasgow in 1901.- Definition :...
. When war broke out in 1914 he was instrumental in organising a society known as the Society of Good Samaritans. The idea was to train Russian students to take care of the wounded. This also had a special recognition from the Czar. He was against violence of any sort, despite having a leading position in Tsarist arms production. He refused to accept defeat even under trying conditions.
Life in Germany and World War II
His successful professional life ended with the Russian Revolutions of 1917. In 1918, when the BolshevikBolshevik
The Bolsheviks, originally also Bolshevists , derived from bol'shinstvo, "majority") were a faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party which split apart from the Menshevik faction at the Second Party Congress in 1903....
government was in power, the ex-Tsar (who had been deposed in the February Revolution) and some of his family were executed. Trachtenberg was very critical of the new government, and felt that he was in danger.
Disguising himself he escaped to Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
which became his new home. He worked as an editor for a magazine publishing company advocating a peaceful future. He was regarded as an expert on Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n affairs and wrote a book on Russian industry
Industry
Industry refers to the production of an economic good or service within an economy.-Industrial sectors:There are four key industrial economic sectors: the primary sector, largely raw material extraction industries such as mining and farming; the secondary sector, involving refining, construction,...
. When fascism
Fascism
Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...
came to power under Hitler, Trachtenberg criticized the Nazis from a pacifist perspective. Fearing that the regime was after him he escaped with his wife to Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
in Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
. There he worked for a scientific magazine.
After the Anschluss
Anschluss
The Anschluss , also known as the ', was the occupation and annexation of Austria into Nazi Germany in 1938....
, Trachtenberg was captured and sent to prison
Prison
A prison is a place in which people are physically confined and, usually, deprived of a range of personal freedoms. Imprisonment or incarceration is a legal penalty that may be imposed by the state for the commission of a crime...
. From there he escaped and fled with his wife to what became Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
where he lived incognito. This was only short-lived as the Nazis caught him and transported him to a concentration camp.
He diverted his attention to think on manipulation of number
Number
A number is a mathematical object used to count and measure. In mathematics, the definition of number has been extended over the years to include such numbers as zero, negative numbers, rational numbers, irrational numbers, and complex numbers....
s to forget the ruthlessness he witnessed in the concentration camp. Without any paper or pencil he worked mentally and only scribbled the final results on any bit of paper he could lay hands on.
In 1944, after almost seven years in prison
Prison
A prison is a place in which people are physically confined and, usually, deprived of a range of personal freedoms. Imprisonment or incarceration is a legal penalty that may be imposed by the state for the commission of a crime...
, when he learned that he was to be executed, his wife bribed the guards and got him transferred to another prison from where he escaped and fled with his wife. Again he was caught and sent to another prison from where he escaped to Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
with the help of his wife who pawned her jewelry to bribe the guards.