Template:Use dmy dates Edouard Zeckendorf (2 May 1901 – 16 May 1983) was a Belgian doctor, army officer and amateur mathematician. In mathematics, he is best known for his work on Fibonacci numbers and in particular for proving Zeckendorf's theorem: every positive whole number is either a Fibonacci number or can be written as a sum of distinct non-consecutive Fibonacci numbers (and such a representation is unique).
Early LifeEdit
Zeckendorf was born in Liège in 1901. He was the son of Abraham Zeckendorf, Dutch dentist and practicing Jew.<ref name=fib/> In 1925, Zeckendorf graduated as a medical doctor from the University of Liège and joined the Belgian Army medical corps.<ref name=bio/> When Germany invaded Belgium in 1940, Zeckendorf was taken prisoner and remained a prisoner of war until 1945. During this period, he provided medical care to other allied POWs.<ref name=fib/>
CareerEdit
When Germany invaded Belgium in 1940, Zeckendorf was taken prisoner and remained a prisoner of war until 1945. During this period, he provided medical care to other allied POWs.<ref name=fib/>
After the war, he published over 20 papers, mostly in number theory.<ref name=bio/>
Zeckendorf retired from the army in 1957 as a colonel.