Matteo Bottasso

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Matteo Bottasso graduated in mathematics from the Turin University in 1901. He was appointed assistant professor in projective geometry at Turin University where he taught for three years, and then he improved his knowledge of mathematics by making a visit to Paris. Arriving back in Italy he was appointed assistant professor of projective geometry at the University of Bologna, and then a teacher of mathematics at high schools, lecturer of algebra and geometry at the University and, finally, from 1910, professor at the Turin Army Academy. In 1916, two years before his death, he was appointed professor of rational mechanics and mathematical-physics at the University of Messina.

Bottasso studied differential geometry and mechanics. In his paper Alcune applicazioni delle formule di Fernet (Atti Acc. Sci. Torino, 1911) he pointed out:-

... the simplicity and the quickness of vector calculus in the approach to different problems for which Cartesian methods are too difficult.

He used the vector calculus in studying problems in geometry, mechanics and physics. He worked with Burali-Forti and Marcolongo on the Analyse vectorielle générale, by writing the volume Astatique. In the paper Il teorema di Rouché-Capelli per i sistemi di equazioni integrali (Atti Acc. Sci. Torino, 1912) Bottasso underlined the analogy between vector homography and integral equations, and used vector homography to solve integral equations.

He was a lecturer at the 'Conferenze matematiche' organised by Giuseppe Peano at the Turin University between 1915 and 1916, speaking to the high school teachers about numerical calculus.

Article by: Umberto Lucia, Sociaetà Italiana di Storia delle Matematiche

Additional Material in MacTutor

1. Publications of Matteo Bottasso

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