2. John von Neumann was the finest mathematician of his time, working on quantum physics to nuclear weapons, and he was also a genius at learning new languages
He was hailed as the greatest mathematician of his generation. While this was certainly true, John von Neumann was so much more than this. The man was a true genius and a veritable polymath. He excelled in a number of fields. He was a pioneering researcher in algebra, quantum physics and economics. He even made an invaluable contribution to the development of nuclear weapons during the Manhattan Project and played a part in the development of the modern computer. Unsurprisingly, von Neumann was also a polyglot, capable of speaking multiple languages as well as translating from one to another instantaneously.
Born in Budapest in 1903, Von Neumann was the ultimate child prodigy. As well as showing an aptitude for math, he also learned languages at an astonishing rate. By the age of six, he could speak fluent Ancient Greek as well as his native Hungarian. Alongside this, his father ordered that his children learn English, French, German and Italian – all before they went to school at the age of 10. Later, after his formal schooling, he attended university in Budapest and then in Berlin. He was then offered a lifetime professorship at the Institute for Advanced Study (IAS) in New Jersey at the age of just 30. He accepted and moved to the United States.
It was in America where von Neumann carried out almost all of his most important work. He remained at the IAS until his death in 1957. Ever since he has been regarded as one of the finest minds of the 20th century, and his work is still highly relevant and influential to this day. As to his language skills, Von Neumann was fluent in French, German, Latin, Greek, English and Yiddish, in addition to his native Hungarian. Contemporaries would recall with wonder how he could switch effortlessly between two or more languages, the sign of a true polyglot.