Abraham Robinson (born Robinsohn; October 6, 1918 – April 11, 1974) was a mathematician who is most widely known for development of non-standard analysis, a mathematically rigorous system whereby infinitesimal and infinite numbers were reincorporated into modern mathematics. Nearly half of Robinson’s papers were in applied mathematics rather than in pure mathematics.
Abraham Robinson (born Robinsohn; October 6, 1918 – April 11, 1974) was a mathematician who is most widely known for spread of non-standard analysis, a mathematically rigorous system whereby infinitesimal and infinite numbers were reincorporated into advanced mathematics. Nearly half of Robinson’s papers were in applied mathematics rather than in pure mathematics.
He was born to a Jewish associates with strong Zionist beliefs, in Waldenburg, Germany, which is now Wałbrzych, in Poland. In 1933, he emigrated to British Mandate of Palestine, where he earned a first degree from the Hebrew University. Robinson was in France bearing in mind the Nazis invaded during World War II, and escaped by train and upon foot, being alternately questioned by French soldiers suspicious of his German passport and asked by them to part his map, which was more detailed than theirs. While in London, he united the Free French Air Force and contributed to the engagement effort by teaching himself aerodynamics and becoming an expert on the airfoils used in the wings of fighter planes.
After the war, Robinson worked in London, Toronto, and Jerusalem, but ended up at the University of California, Los Angeles in 1962.