Pierre de Fermat

Pierre de Fermat (1601-1665) was a French lawyer and mathematician known for his contributions to number theory and for formulating what is now known as Fermat's Last Theorem. His assertion that there were no whole number solutions to the equation an + bn = cn for n greater than 2 remained unproven for over three centuries, sparking interest and research among mathematicians worldwide. Fermat's work laid the groundwork for modern mathematics, and his famous note about the theorem being proven but too large to fit in the margins of his work has become legendary.