Nina Karlovna Bari is a great example of a woman who contributed to
mathematics. Nina Bari provided the advancement of the theory of
trigonometry. She dedicated her life to solving theory functions. Once
Bari solved many questions regarding trigonometric series, she shared
her findings with many students and colleagues through teaching,
lecturing, and giving seminars.
On November 19, 1901, Nina Karlovna Bari was born in Moscow, Russia.
She was a daughter to Doctor Karl Adolfovich and Olga Eduardovna Bari.
Nothing is recorded about Nina's childhood and very little is known
about her high school years. She attended a private high school for
girls called L. O. Vyazemska’s. When she was studying in high school
she showed a great potential in mathematics. By 1918 she has passed the
high school graduation examination that was usually given for high
school boys. (Soublis)
Once she finished high school she attended Moscow State University.
Originally, Moscow State was a university "exclusively for men.”
(Campbell and Grinstein) However, after the Revolution, Moscow State
University became available for men and women alike. Nina Bari was the
first woman to enroll in it.
During her time at Moscow State University, she was involved with a
group called the "Luzitania.” (Soublis) The group was named after its
leader Nikolai Nikolaevich Luzin. Luzin worked at Moscow State
University as Professor of Pure Mathematics. Luzin’s area of specialty
was the foundation of mathematics and measure theory. While at Moscow
State, he formed a research group, which many of the students labeled
"Luzitania.” The group included many impressive students that included
Aleksandrov, Suslin, Menshov, Khinchin, Urysohn, Kolmogorov, and also
Bari. This group mainly studied function theory because that was all
Luzin preferred. While Bari was a member of the Luzitania, she
discovered the uniqueness of the trigonometric series. This was the
birth to her life’s quest. She spent the rest of her life focused on
trigonometric series. (O’Connor and Robertson)
Since Bari finished college early in 1921, she was the first woman to
graduate from Moscow State University. After college, Bari went into
teaching. From 1921-1925, Nina Bari taught at the Moscow Forestry
Institute. Still wanting more, Bari taught at the Sverdlov Communist
Institute for one year and the Moscow Polytechnic Institute for two
years while maintaining her original job at Moscow Forestry Institute. A
short while after, Moscow State University opened a Research Institute
of Mathematics and Mechanics. Bari kept teaching, but she also became
one of the first researchers at Moscow State University. She focused on
the analysis of various trigonometric series. The second year after she
graduated, she presented the findings of her research to the Moscow
Mathematical Society. She again was the first woman to give a
presentation to the Moscow Mathematical Society. (Campbell and Grinstein
pg 6-7)
Keeping with her original love for trigonometric series, Bari based her
thesis topic on the theory of trigonometric series. By 1926, Bari
defended her thesis, which revealed many solutions to complicated
problems of the trigonometric series. From this great achievement, she
received the Glavnauk Prize. "Glavnauk was the acronym for the Central
Administration of Scientific, Scholarly, Artistic and Museum
Institutions, 1922-1930.” (Campbell and Grinstein pg7)
After obtaining her Ph.D, Nina Bari traveled throughout the world
attending seminars and lectures. Through many lectures, seminars, and
publications of her own work, Bari created a reputation as a great
mathematician. Bari was the leading mathematician in the theory of
functions of a real variable and also received the degree of Doctor of
the Physical-Mathematical Sciences. By 1950, Bari kept her position as a
full professor at Moscow State University. However, she still gave
lectures and attended some mathematical events such as the International
Congress of Mathematicians in Edinburgh and presented on the state of
the theory of trigonometric series at the Third All-Union Congress in
Moscow. (Campbell and Grinstein pg 8)
Though her love for the theory of functions remained strong, Nina had
other interests as well such as art, music, and ballet. But Bari’s main
interest would be her love for the sport of hiking. She enjoyed
climbing in the mountains with her husband, Viktor Vladmirovich
Nemytski, who shared both the love of mathematics and hiking in the
mountains. (O’Connor and Robertson) Viktor, also a mathematician, was a
Moscow State University graduate. He ultimately became a professor at
Moscow State University too. The Caucasus, Altai, Lamir are just some
of the mountains that Viktor and Nina hiked across. (Campbell and
Grinstein pg 8-9)
In 1961 on July 12, Nina Bari’s life ended. Her death was reported a
tragic accident where she fell in front of a train in the Moscow Metro.
Her former friend and colleague, P.L. Ul’yanov, wrote:
"The ultimate death of N. K. Bari is a great loss for Soviet mathematics
and a great misfortune for all who know her. The image of Bari as a
lively, straightforward person with an inexhaustible reserve of
cheerfulness will remain forever in the hearts of all who knew her.
(Campbell and Grinstein pg 9)”
Nina Karlovna Bari was a woman mathematician who lived a life full
of accomplishments. She dedicated her life to the theory of
trigonometric series. She has studied, analyzed, and done extensive
research on trigonometric series that assisted her in solving many
problems that were unanswered in the early 1900s. Not only has Nina
enriched her life through the dedication for mathematics, but she has
also shared with many others her breakthroughs on the theory of
functions. Nina Karlovna Bari, a woman mathematician, gained much
respect from all mathematicians of her time and will not easily be
forgotten for her remarkable work.
| 
