George Boole was born in Lincolnshire.
Lord Mayor of Cork to visit Lincoln in celebration of George Boole’s bicentenary
Relatives of renowned mathematician George Boole will join a delegation from Cork visiting Lincoln today Friday, September 4 to celebrate the life and legacy of one of the city’s most influential sons. Self-taught mathematical genius George Boole was born in Lincoln in 1815 and his work forms the basis of computer science and electronic circuitry. He is widely recognised as the forefather of the information age. In 1849 Boole was appointed as the first Professor of Mathematics at University College Cork, where he developed his most important work – An Investigation of the Laws of Thought.
During their trip the delegation will visit Lincoln Cathedral, where there is a stained glass window marking George Boole’s achievements. The delegation will also visit Boole’s former home in Pottergate. An exhibition commemorating his 200th birthday at the University of Lincoln’s Great Central Warehouse Library will be on display together with material from the archives.
The Mayor of Lincoln, Cllr Andrew Kerry, will welcome the Lord Mayor of Cork, representatives from University College Cork and Cork City Council, and relatives of George Boole. He said: “It’s so exciting to be part of the bicentenary celebrations of one of the world’s most renowned mathematicians. George Boole’s legacy surrounds us everywhere – all modern computing devices, including mobile phones and tablets, are essentially derived from the Boolean calculator.”
Dr Michael Murphy, President of University College Cork said: “Lincoln has been the birthplace of two of the greatest mathematical geniuses, Isaac Newton in the 17th century and George Boole in the 19th. In Lincoln, Boole’s prodigious talent was nurtured and in Cork, at Queen’s College, he was given the opportunity, the time, the space and the environment to crystalize his thoughts that shaped our modern human experience.
“UCC is delighted to share with the University of Lincoln and the city councils of Lincoln and Cork pride in Boole’s achievements and our joint commitment to promulgating and celebrating his genius.”
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Cllr Chris O'Leary, Lord Mayor of Cork said: “I met last week with members of the Boole Family when they visited Cork and called in to City Hall. I was delighted that the city was asked to accompany them in the coming days when they visit the birthplace of their great ancestor as Lincoln pays its tribute to George Boole as part of this very important year of commemoration.”
Ann Doherty, Chief Executive of Cork City Council said: “We have been working closely with UCC to ensure that Cork pays a fitting tribute to the legacy of Boole. This trip is an integral part of Cork City's tribute and I especially wish to thank the Chief Executive and Mayor of Lincoln for putting together such a respectful and meaningful itinerary of events.”
University College Cork have launched a year long programme of events and projects celebrating the life and legacy of George Boole (1815-2015). In particular, Boole2School will take place on George Boole Day. This initiative will see children aged 8- 18 from all over the world have the opportunity to complete a Boolean Logic maths lesson. In addition, a celebration of the bicentenary of George Boole’s birth in 1815, including the conferring of honorary degrees on international leaders from the worlds of mathematics and information technology, will also take place on his 200th birthday, 2nd November 2015.
While 2015 marks the bicentennial of George Boole, UCC has partnered with MIT on a series of joint projects to celebrate the Claude Shannon centenial in 2016. Initiatives include a joint Boole/Shannon exhibition planned for Boston in 2016, a co-hosted lecture series on the theme of Compute & Communicate, an exchange programme between UCC and MIT and a screening of ‘The Genius of George Boole’ around George Boole Day on November 2 2015.
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