About Martin Goldstern's mathematical Genealogy

On my Home Page, I claim that I can trace my mathematical genealogy back to Leonhard Euler and Carl Gauß: One of my thesis advisors was Robert Tichy, his thesis advisor was Edmund Hlawka, etc (see my family tree). Following this list of thesis advisors we also get to Joseph Lagrange, whose thesis advisor, according to the math genealogy database, was Leonhard Euler.

As the math genealogy database itself points out, For the earlier periods the advisor/advisee relationship may not have been nearly so formal as it is in modern times. Thus, the links shown for those periods may reflect a mentor/student circumstance that is somewhat different than the links for more recent decades.
The case of Lagrange is a particular blatant example. Lagrange was largely self taught; the fact that he corresponded with Euler about his results, and that Euler supported his career does not mean, by modern standards, that Euler was Lagrange's Ph.D. advisor.

But whether or not I can count Euler as my "ancestor" in any formal sense makes not the slightest difference: climbing up the family tree leads nowhere -- just for show.

Back to my Home page, or to my family tree.