"Fermat's Last Therom"

Subject  > Science Essays  > Mathematics

Fermat's Last Theorem Pierre de Fermat was one of the most famous number theorists in history, but he was not a mathematician. He was a lawyer who served at the highest level of the criminal court in Toulouse ( Mahoney 3). Yet this amateur came up with an equation that stumped mathematicians for over 350 years after he scribbled it down as a note. He stated that the equation has no non-zero integer solutions for x, y, and z when n > 2. As simple as this concept seems, it is far from easy to prove. It took several of the best minds to slowly put the pieces of the proof together. Before he came up with this theorem, ...

... but after a while he invited a former student of his named Richard Taylor to join him in his efforts. On September 19th, 1994 he finally uncovered the mystery and after ten years of work he was able to show the world what it had been awaiting for 364 years ( Mahoney 54-55). For his efforts, Wiles received several mathematical awards including the Wolfskehl Prize, which was a large sum of money left by a German industrialist for the person who could prove Fermat's Last theorem. Even with all the awards, Wiles was most rewarded by the feeling of accomplishment that came from fulfilling a childhood dream ( Mahoney 55). The perseverance shown

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