In January 1816, Sophie Germain became the first woman to win the prestigious Grand Mathematics Prize awarded by the Paris Academy of Sciences. This notable recognition was for her groundbreaking work on the theory of elastic waves. However, her triumph was marred by an unfortunate incident when the tickets to the award ceremony were reportedly “lost in the mail,” preventing her attendance.
The communication from the secretary general of the Academy acknowledged Germain’s win but lacked congratulatory sentiment. It highlighted that she was the only entrant for the award and mentioned that she had not received her tickets for the ceremony scheduled for January 9, 1816. The letter offered to produce handwritten tickets but lacked any genuine appreciation for her achievement. Ultimately, Germain chose not to attend, feeling that the committee did not adequately respect her contributions.
On the day of the ceremony, the newspaper Journal des Débats noted the disappointment of the audience. The article remarked that the public was eager to see “Miss Sophie Germain” receive the trophy that no other woman had claimed in France. Germain’s absence was a stark reminder of the gender biases prevalent in her time.
Germain’s journey into mathematics began during her childhood in a wealthy merchant’s family. During the chaos of the French Revolution, she found solace in her father’s library, where she developed a fascination with mathematics. Despite her parents’ disapproval of her “unladylike” pursuits—going so far as to remove her warm clothes to deter her studies—she persevered. In the quiet of night, she would sneak candles under quilts to continue her research.
Upon the opening of the École Polytechnique in 1794, Germain, barred from attending, utilized publicly available lecture notes. She submitted solutions to problems under the pseudonym “Antoine August LeBlanc.” This strategy allowed her to engage with leading mathematicians of her time, including Carl Friedrich Gauss and Joseph-Louis Lagrange.
Around 1806, Germain became captivated by a phenomenon described in physicist Ernst Chladni’s 1787 work. He demonstrated that when sand is sprinkled on a glass plate and played with a violin bow, intricate geometric patterns emerge. The Paris Academy had offered a prize for a mathematical description of these “Chladni figures” for three consecutive years, yet no one had attempted a solution. Germain, however, submitted her ideas each year. Her final submission, titled “Research on the Vibrations of Elastic Plates,” showcased her insights into 2D harmonic oscillation.
Despite her contributions, the recognition she received was overshadowed by a lack of respect from some of her contemporaries. One of her rivals, Siméon Poisson, was part of the award committee and refused to engage with her publicly. Nevertheless, Germain found support from notable figures like Lagrange and Gauss. Gauss remarked on the exceptional talent and courage required for a woman to navigate the obstacles faced in the male-dominated field of mathematics.
Germain continued her research independently for years. Her collaboration with mathematician Adrien-Marie Legendre led to significant advances in proving Fermat’s Last Theorem, which posits that no three positive integers can satisfy the equation an + bn = cn for any integer n greater than 2. She demonstrated that the theorem held for a specific class of prime numbers, now known as Germain primes. This foundation contributed to the complete solution provided by Andrew Wiles in 1994.
Despite her groundbreaking work, Germain’s contributions were often overlooked. Her theorem was mentioned only in a footnote in Legendre’s writings. In 1831, Gauss advocated for Germain to receive an honorary degree from the University of Göttingen, but she passed away from breast cancer shortly before the award could be bestowed.
Sophie Germain’s legacy remains one of resilience and brilliance in the face of adversity. Her story serves as a reminder of the challenges women have faced in the sciences and the importance of recognizing and celebrating their achievements.
