Public Scientific School 'Vito Volterra' Sassoferrato (AN) - Italy




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Vito Volterra, an Italian mathematician, was born in Ancona in 1860 and died in Rome in 1940. He studied with E.Betti and Dini in Pisa, where he graduated in physics in 1882. He was teacher of rational mechanic (1883) there he went to Torino (1892) than finally to Rome where (1900) he tought as a university teacher of physics and mathematics, till 1931, when he was obliged to resign for having refused to give the faithfulness the regime imposed by Fascism. He was one of the main mathematicians and physicist-mathematicians of his time. In 1884 he began the fundamental researches on variations, orientating them towards the functional analysis, one of the branches of mathematics which had the biggest development.The theory of integral equations and the one of integral-differential equations, which had many applications in physics (equations of rotating shafts), are equally remarkable. In his last years Volterra was also interested in biometrics, and developed (1927) A. J. Lotka's theories, trying to express the mutual actions of associated biologic species under the shape of differential equations and to deduce the behaviour of fluctuations of biologic populations. Among the many works, we quote Théorie gènérale des fonctionnelles, in collaboration with J. Pèrés (1936).

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Volterra showed the possibility of applying exact and strict methods to the universe of human sciences, attributing a theoretic centrality to mathematics in relation with philosophy studies. He showed the need of a general clearness in method of a reflection on the bases of scientific knowledge. This attitude was common to the scientists of that period, which meant emphasizing the problem of the relatinship between mathematics and philosophy. An open and democratic conception of science, which refused to accept consolidated principles concerned as divine, questioning the thruth and the meaning of theories and scientific knowledge in general, continuing however to search for new ways for its development. Volterra himself, in 1907, to make this scientific vision concrete, founded the Italian society for the progress the importance of scientific research to the civil and economic prosperity of a nation. We are at the beginning of the century, years devoted to the building postunitary of Italy, of an Italy which has to keep up with times, to make progress and modernize. The society wanted by Volterra was set up under these auspices. After the first world war Volterra organized and directed the Italian Invention and Research Office, which represented the original nucleus of the National Council of Researches, set up in 1923. From the end of the 800 onward Volterra was one of the most authoritative figures in the European scientific outline. He is one of the scholars who founded a new branch of mathematics, the functional analysis. In particular the integral and integral-differential equations became object of his most significant researches. He also worked out the real mathematic theory of the struggle for life among certain living species. Besides, he attributed relevance to the mathematical methods also in the economic field.

Bibliography sources:
Vito Volterra
SAGGI SCIENTIFICI
Zanichelli, Bologna, 1990
GRANDE ENCICLOPEDIA VALLARDI
Milano, 1971

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