In spite of a relatively short career, Hermann Minkowski played an important role in the development of modern mathematics. His work formed the basis for modern functional analysis, and he did much to expand the knowledge of quadratic forms. Minkowski also developed the mathematical theory known as the geometry of numbers and laid the mathematical foundation for Albert Einstein's theory of relativity by pioneering the notion of a four-dimensional space-time continuum.

Minkowski was born in Alexotas, Russia, on June 22, 1864, of German parents. The family returned to their native Germany in 1872, to the city of Königsberg, where Minkowski spent the rest of his childhood and also attended university. His brother, Oskar Minkowski, became famous as the physiologist who discovered the link between diabetes and the pancreas.

Even as a student at the University of Königsberg, Minkowski demonstrated a rare mathematical talent. In 1881, the Paris...