1823-1892

Italian mathematician who made major contributions in algebra and topology (the study of surfaces). Betti developed proofs for many of the algebraic concepts of his colleague, Evariste Galois. Betti was also the first to show that the quintic function—a function in which a variable is raised to the fifth power—can be solved using integrals of elliptic functions. In addition to his mathematical work, Betti served in several political positions during his life.