Esteban Terradas i Illa

Esteban Terradas i Illa, also known as Esteve Terradas, was a Spanish mathematician, scientist and engineer who was born in Barcelona on 15 September 1883. He was a prodigy who entered the university at the age of 15 and obtained two doctorates in mathematics and physics by the age of 22. He also earned two degrees in engineering from the School of Industrial Engineering of Barcelona. He published his first paper on the properties of the roots of unity in 1904 and later wrote many articles on various topics in mathematics and physics. He was a professor of mathematical analysis, mathematical physics, acoustics, optics, electricity, magnetism and classical mechanics at different universities in Spain and South America. He was a member of the Royal Academy of the Spanish Language and active in the Royal Academy of Exact, Physical and Natural Sciences and the Royal Academy of Sciences and Arts of Barcelona. He received honorary doctorates from several universities and was a founding member of the Sciences Section of the Institute of Catalan Studies. He was also a consultant in the Spanish aeronautics, electric power, telephone and railway industries. He participated in the design and construction of several projects, such as the Secondary Network of Catalan Railways, the Barcelona Metro, the Madrid Metro, the Trans-Saharan Railway, the National Institute of Aeronautics and the National Institute of Industry. He also contributed to the development of radio, telegraphy, telephony and television in Spain. He died in Madrid on 9 May 1950 from a heart attack. He was buried in the Cemetery of Montjuïc in Barcelona. He is considered one of the most prominent Spanish scientists and engineers of the 20th century. He left a legacy of scientific and technical achievements that influenced many fields and disciplines.