Enrico Betti, an Italian mathematician, was born near Pistoia, Italy on October 21, 1823. He died at Pisa, Italy on August 11, 1892.

With the loss of his father while still very young, Betti received his early education from his mother. He earned a degree in physical and mathematical sciences at the University of Pisa. While a university student, he championed ideas that would later propel him into the Italian war for independence.

In 1865, after a stint teaching mathematics at a high school in Pistoia, he was offered and accepted a professorship at the University of Pisa, where he remained until his death. In Pisa, he also served as rector of the university, and director of the teacher's college. He served as a member of parliament beginning in 1862, and as a senator starting in 1884.

For several months in 1874, Betti served as secretary of state for public education. His preference, however, was for...