Biographies > Disciples
Bonaventura Cavalieri
(1598-1647)
Born in Milan, he entered the Order of the Gesuates at a very early age (1615). In Pisa he studied
underBenedetto Castelli
(1577/8-1643), who noted his exceptional aptitude for the mathematical
sciences. It was through Castelli that Cavalieri met Galileo Galilei
(1564-1642), with whom he remained in close contact. In 1629, thanks also to
the support of Galileo, who considered Cavalieri one
of the best mathematicians of his time, he was assigned the Chair of
Mathematics at the University of Bologna. His name is justly known for his work
on the geometry of the indivisible quantities (Geometria indivisibilibus continuorum
nova quadam ratione promota, Bologna, 1635) with which he anticipated infinitesimal calculus. Cavalieri also constituted a reference point for some
research in geometry conducted by the young Evangelista Torricelli (1608-1647).
The last years of his life were plagued by continuous illness. In 1650, Cavalieri's chair at the University of Bologna was occupied
by the astronomer Gian Domenico
Cassini (1625-1712).