James Joseph Sylvester (1814 - 1897) British mathematician, poet and author, best known for Sylvester's sequence and for coining mathematical terms, some of which are still in use today (such as “totient” and “totative”).

Born in England of a Jewish family, Sylvester studied in England and Scotland, and taught in the United States. He also studied law.

Bibliography

1

R. C. Archibald, ``James Joseph Sylvester'', Studies and Essays in the History of Science and Learning Offered in Homage to George Sarton on the Occasion of his Sixtieth Birthday. New York: H. Schuman (1947): 209 - 217

2

L. S. Feuer, ``Sylvester in Virginia'' The Mathematical Intelligencer 9 (1987): 13 - 20