Giuseppe Bruno

Giuseppe Bruno's parents were poor but he won a free place to the Collegio Carlo Alberto where he began university study. He entered the University of Turin in 1883, graduating with a philosophy degree three years later.

After teaching at the Collegio Carlo Alberto during 1846-47 he moved to Ceva where he taught philosophy, then he returned to Turin. In Turin he taught mathematics at the Collegio Nazionale from 1850 as well as tutoring privately.

In 1850 Bruno received a degree in hydraulic engineering and, the following year, he received his doctorate in mathematics. He began acting as a substitute at the University of Turin, teaching where it proved necessary. From 1852 to 1858 he taught algebra and geometry, while from 1860 to 1862 he taught differential and integral calculus.

Bruno gave up his teaching post at the Collegio Nazionale in 1861, having accepted a post at the Technical Institute the previous year. In 1863 he taught descriptive geometry at the University and, in 1863, he became Professor of Descriptive Geometry.

His title was changed to Professor of Projective Geometry with Design in 1875 and in 1881 he became Chairman of the Faculty of Science. One of Bruno's students, Corrado Segre, became his assistant in the mid 1880s.

All Bruno's publications deal with research into geometry. He only wrote 21 papers, having devoted much of his time and energy to teaching. His lifestyle is described in [1]:-

... Bruno had few friends and almost never left the circle of his family. Bruno was a man of duty, playing for his family, servants, and students the role of benevolent despot. But in the classroom he was an excellent teacher, both because of the clarity of his lectures and the enthusiasm for which he gave them.