Mathematics underfoot: The formulas that came to Wuerzburg from New Haven

TL;DR

This paper explores the historical significance of two mathematical formulas embedded in the Wuerzburg building's floor, linking them to the work of Wilhelm Roentgen and 19th-century academic collaborations across the Atlantic.

Contribution

It uncovers the historical and mathematical context of formulas in Wuerzburg, connecting them to Roentgen's discovery of X-rays and 19th-century academic exchanges.

Findings

The formulas are historically linked to Roentgen's work.

They reflect transatlantic academic collaborations in the 19th century.

The formulas symbolize the mathematical foundations of early X-ray research.

Abstract

Two formulas are set in floor-tiles in the foyer of the Wuerzburg building that houses the laboratory in which Wilhelm Roentgen discovered X-rays in 1895. But what do they mean, and what have they got to do with Roentgen or his work? The answers involve two distinguished professors and their PhD students, working on opposite sides of the Atlantic in the 19th Century.