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Charles Émile Picard (July 24, 1856 - December 11, 1941) was a leading French mathematician. (He is usually referred to simply as Émile Picard.)
Picard's mathematical papers, textbooks, and many popular writings exhibit an extraordinary range of interests, as well as an impressive mastery of the mathematics of his time. Modern students of complex variables are probably familiar with his theorem stating that every nonconstant entire function takes every value infinitely often, with perhaps one exception. He also made important contributions in the theory of differential equations, including work on Painlevé transcendents and his introduction of a kind of symmetry group for a linear differential equation, the Picard group. In connection with his work on function theory, he was one of the first mathematicians to use the emerging ideas of algebraic topology. In addition to his path-breaking theoretical work, Picard also made important contributions to applied mathematics, including the theories of telegraphy and elasticity. His collected papers run to four volumes.
Like his contemporary, Henri Poincare, Picard was much concerned with the training of mathematics, physics, and engineering students. He wrote a classic textbook on analysis-- which is still considered a standard reference-- as well as one of the first textbooks on the theory of relativity. Picard's popular writings include biographies of many leading French mathematicians, including his father in law, Charles Hermite.
See also:
- Picard theorem
- Picard variety
- Picard functor
- Picard-Lefschetz formula
- Picard-Lindelöf theorem
- Painlevé transcendent
References
- Template:Book reference Four volumes
- Template:Book reference Three volumesfr:Émile Picard