Hacker Newsnew | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submit | drooglyman's commentslogin

For what it's worth, I just spent ~10 minutes looking for a solid source on this and couldn't find confirmation.

The closest I found was a bio[1], which includes the following:

> The Institute set as a prize competition subject the propagation of heat in solid bodies for the 1811 mathematics prize. Fourier submitted his 1807 memoir together with additional work on the cooling of infinite solids and terrestrial and radiant heat. Only one other entry was received and the committee set up to decide on the award of the prize, Lagrange, Laplace, Malus, Haüy and Legendre, awarded Fourier the prize.

So it's not entirely wrong, but I think that all-star team was not his defense committee.

[1] https://mathshistory.st-andrews.ac.uk/Biographies/Fourier


https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-0-387-98098-0_... states the same, and mentions what I couldn’t find earlier: that they criticized Fourier for his lack of rigour (I remember that as something along the lines of “but if that’s correct, this also is and that can’t be true, can it?”, (with “this” being Gibb’s phenomenon (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gibbs_phenomenon)), but chances are high that isn’t happen, either.

Edit: https://www.comsol.com/blogs/happy-birthday-joseph-fourier/ has more info. If he did a thesis defense (did he?), I guess there’s a decent chance Laplace and Lagrange (his supervisor, according to https://www.genealogy.math.ndsu.nodak.edu/id.php?id=17981) were there.

Legendre seems doubtful. Weirdly, Legendre doesn’t seem to exist in the Mathematics Genealogy Project.

Edit 2: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/16775/16775-h/16775-h.htm#PA... (by https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/François_Arago, who was only 18 years younger than Fourier) is the best I can find on this. It says:

“The first memoir of Fourier on the theory of heat dates from the year 1807. The Academy, to which it was communicated, being desirous of inducing the author to extend and improve his researches, made the question of the propagation of heat the subject of the great mathematical prize which was to be awarded in the beginning of the year 1812. Fourier did, in effect, compete, and his memoir was crowned. But, alas! as Fontenelle said: "In the country even of demonstrations, there are to be found causes of dissension." Some restrictions mingled with the favourable judgment. The illustrious commissioners of the prize, Laplace, Lagrange, and Legendre, while acknowledging the novelty and importance of the subject, while declaring that the real differential equations of the propagation of heat were finally found, asserted that they perceived difficulties in the way in which the author arrived at them. They added, that his processes of integration left something to be desired, even on the score of rigour. They did not, however, support their opinion by any arguments.”


> For example, I am sure there are more muslims in the USA than there are LGBTs

No, and it's not even close. An estimated 20 million Americans identify as LGBT [1], compared to ~3.5M Muslims [2].

I wonder what might make someone underestimate the number of LGBT people in the US. Maybe... a lack of representation in popular media?

[1] https://thehill.com/changing-america/respect/diversity-inclu...

[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islam_in_the_United_States


Point made. That was interesting - I wasn't aware that the US had so many people who identified as LGBT. Note though that media representation wouldn't have changed that erroneous view of mine because that is a common assumption made out of ignorance. The media showing more LBTQ characters is not going to suddenly enlighten many that there are so many of them.


Yep, it's the first M.

I think in general the rule is this: - Any Ms in the correct position turn green (duh) - If there are X Ms remaining in the answer, turn the first X (non-green) Ms in the guess yellow


Suggesting that e-ink can be useful for "low refresh rate displays in VFR aircraft" sure sounds like a solution searching for a problem.


> The smell causes me to immediately change my clothes. It's not a fecal smell. I can't begin to describe it, but once you smell it you'll never forget.

I'm sorry to put this in your head but... fish sauce.


Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: