author
Robert Forsyth Scott
1849–1933
A Scottish mathematician and college leader, he is remembered both for a classic text on determinants and for guiding St John’s College, Cambridge, for nearly three decades.
1 Audiobook
St. John's College, Cambridge
by Robert Forsyth Scott
About the author
Born in Leith, near Edinburgh, in 1849, Robert Forsyth Scott studied at University College London and then St John’s College, Cambridge, where he distinguished himself in mathematics. He was later called to the Bar, but academic life remained central to his career.
Scott became a Fellow of St John’s and went on to serve as Master of the college from 1908 until his death in 1933. Alongside his college leadership, he wrote The Theory of Determinants and Their Applications, a work that helped secure his place in the history of mathematics.
He also wrote on the history of his college, including St. John’s College, Cambridge. That combination of mathematical scholarship, legal training, and long service to Cambridge gives his work a thoughtful, wide-ranging character.