Henk J. M. Bos


Hendrik Jan Maarten "Henk" Bos is a Dutch historian of mathematics.

Career

Hendrik was a student of Hans Freudenthal and Jerome Ravetz at Utrecht University and in 1973 wrote a thesis "Differentials, higher order differentials, and the derivative in Liebnitzian calculus" for his doctorate.
Bos worked at Utrecht University for most of his career. In 1985 he became professor of history of mathematics.
He took an interest in the tractrix as a mathematical stimulus.
Bos retired in 2005. Since his retirement he has been honorary professor of the history of mathematics at the Faculty of Science at the University of Aarhus. He is married to Kirsti Andersen.
At his Valedictory Symposium when he retired, Henk spoke on fluid concepts in mathematics in a talk titled "Loose Ends". He was awarded the Kenneth O. May Medal for 2005.

Selected publications

Bos has contributed to the study of the mathematical works of the seventeenth-century philosopher René Descartes, including Descartes’ contribution to the development of algebra and geometry.