Logic's lost genius

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Gerhard Gentzen (1909-1945) is the founder of modern structural proof theory, whose methods and structures laid the groundwork for the discipline of proof theory and verification programs in computer science. His work on natural deduction, sequent calculus, and ordinal proof theory remains impressive for its clarity and elegance. This book offers the first comprehensive biography of Gentzen, detailing his life and contributions until his arrest and death in Prague in 1945. It emphasizes the conditions of scientific research in National Socialist Germany, the ideological struggle for "German logic," and the key figures involved. Featuring previously unpublished sources, family documents, archival materials, interviews, and Gentzen's public lectures, this work serves as an essential resource on the mathematician, his contributions, and his era. The volume includes substantial essays by Jan von Plato and Craig Smorynski, discussing Gentzen's proof theory and its connections to the ideas of Hilbert, Brouwer, Weyl, and Gödel, as well as its evolution to the present day. Smorynski elaborates on the Hilbert program's significance, while von Plato highlights the advantages of Gentzen's approach. This book is a self-contained starting point for exploring Gentzen's logic and is accessible to a broad audience, including general readers, researchers, students, and teachers.