Letters between Georges Teissier and Vito Volterra

Abstract

Georges Teissier was born in Paris on 19 February 1900. In 1919 he was admitted to the mathematics section of the École Normale Supérieure of Paris. However, he immediately displayed a penchant for natural science, although mathematics was nevertheless to play an important role as he approached biological studies following an interest in population genetics and biometrics, which are highly mathematical disciplines. His early work regarded the theory of biological similarity, animal growth and topics of marine biology. Teissier presented his doctoral thesis in 1931: it was on the subject of the growth of insects and was published by the Biological Station of Roscoff, a biological research centre located in Brittany which depended on the Sorbonne University. He continued to work here throughout the 1930s.