Scientists (3)

Eisenstein was born on April 16, 1823. Yet, this young man of only twenty-two years succeeded in stunning the entire European mathematical community into silence through Franz's Science magazine.

He published a total of twenty-five papers, discussing quadratic and cubic forms, the law of quadratic reciprocity, the fundamental theorem of biquadratic residues, and notes on elliptic and Abelian functions.

In particular, his proofs of the biquadratic reciprocity law and the cubic reciprocity law, along with his discovery that the simplest quadratic covariant of a binary cubic form is its Hessian determinant, directly refuted the established consensus of the European mathematical community.

However, while Eisenstein's discoveries were magnificent, the Royal Scientific Society of Vienna found itself in a difficult position. This fellow's background was far too problematic: he was a Jew, a Protestant, and hailed from Prussia.

He had essentially stacked every "debuff" that the Austrian Empire detested, though Franz felt it was of no consequence; great scientific discoveries should not be buried by political considerations.

Furthermore, listing this Eisenstein as a mathematics laureate of Science magazine would undoubtedly spark massive controversy, and such controversy would bring about immense publicity.

It would be far more effective for promotion than the million-florin grand prize Franz had established.

It would demonstrate that the awards of Science magazine were fair, open, and just, while simultaneously promoting the academic environment of the Austrian Empire—after all, the empire had long been synonymous with autocracy and backwardness in the public eye.

Such a reputation usually does not bring direct advantages or disadvantages, but it subtly alters the perceptions of one's own citizens, and even those of neutral and hostile powers.

At the same time, it served as a form of reverse incentive for the domestic academic community in Austria. Although technology was still in its infancy, many