Albert North Whitehead began his career as a mathematician, but eventually became at least as famous as a philosopher. His first three books, A Treatise on Universal Algebra, The Axioms of Projective Geometry, and The Axioms of Descriptive Geometry, all dealt with traditional mathematical topics. In 1900, Whitehead first heard about the new system for expressing logical concepts in discrete symbols developed by the Italian mathematician Giuseppe Peano . Along with Bertrand Russell , his colleague and former student, Whitehead saw in Peano's symbolism a method for developing a rigorous, nonnumerical approach to logic. The work of these two men culminated in the publication of the three-volume Principia Mathematica, widely regarded as one of the most important books in mathematics ever written. In 1924 Whitehead became professor of philosophy at Harvard University, where he devoted his time to the development of a comprehensive and complex system of philosophy.

Whitehead was born on...