National Mathematics Day 2024: Date, history, significance of the day and interesting facts about Srinivasa Ramanujan

India celebrates National Mathematics Day on December 22, marking the birth anniversary of the great mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan. Initiated in 2012 by then-Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the day honours Ramanujan’s remarkable contributions to mathematics.

Beyond Ramanujan, National Mathematics Day recognises the vital role of mathematics in our everyday lives. Math is essential for everything, from simple tasks like calculating a grocery bill to complex scientific challenges. This day reminds us how math helps solve real-world problems, advances technology, and contributes to global progress.

Here are some interesting facts about Srinivasa Ramanujan’s life and career:

1. Srinivasa Ramanujan was born on December 22, 1887, in Erode, Tamil Nadu, to a Brahmin Iyengar family. He became interested in math at a young age and mastered trigonometry by the age of 12. He then became eligible for a scholarship at the Government Arts College in Kumbakonam.
2. Ramanujan studied at the Government College in Kumbakonam, where he failed exams due to his dislike of non-mathematical subjects.
3. He began as a clerk at the Madras Port Trust in 1912, where his mathematical talent caught the attention of colleagues. One referred him to Professor G.H. Hardy at Trinity College, Cambridge. He met Hardy in 1913 and moved to the college.
4. In 1916, Ramanujan received his Bachelor of Science (BSc) degree. With Hardy’s help, he published several papers on his subject. The two also collaborated on several joint projects.
5. In 1917, Ramanujan was elected to the London Mathematical Society. The next year, he was elected to the prestigious Royal Society for his work on Elliptic Functions and number theory. He also made history as the first Indian to become a Fellow of Trinity College.
6. Ramanujan returned to India in 1919 and breathed his last on April 26 next year, owing to deteriorating health. He was just 32 years old.
7. An anecdote from the biography ‘The Man Who Knew Infinity’ by Robert Kanigel highlights Ramanujan’s brilliance. Hardy travelled on a taxi cab numbered 1729 to visit a sick Ramanujan. During their conversation, Hardy mentioned that it seemed to be a fairly ordinary number. Ramanujan pointed out that it is the smallest number that can be expressed as the sum of two cubes in two different ways (1729=1^3+12^3=9^3+10^3). While it may not be his greatest contribution, it is certainly one of the most memorable.