Boris Grigoryevich Galerkin (, surname more accurately romanized as Galyorkin; –12 July 1945) was a Soviet mathematician and an engineer. Biography Early life Galerkin was born on in Polotsk, Vitebsk Governorate, Russian Empire, now part of Belarus, to Jewish parents, Girsh-Shleym (Hirsh-Shleym) Galerkin and Perla Basia Galerkina. His parents owned a house in the town, but the home-craft they made did not bring in enough money, so at the age of 12, Boris started working as a calligrapher in the court. He had finished school in Polotsk but still needed the exams from an additional year to grant him the right to continue education at a higher level. He passed those in Minsk in 1893 as an external student. The same year he was enrolled at St. Petersburg Technological Institute's mechanics department. Due to the lack of funds, Boris Grigoryevich had to combine studying at the institute with working as a draftsman and giving private lessons. At some point, he married Revekka Treivas, a second niece. They did not have children. Academic life Galerkin's first scientific work was published by the institute "Transactions". The article was titled "A theory of longitudinal curving and an experience of longitudinal curving theory application to many-storied frames, frames with rigid junctions and frame systems". He wrote it while in the "Kresty" prison. In the summer of 1909, Boris Grigoryevich went abroad to see constructions and buildings which interested him. During the next four years, i.e., before World War I, he and many other institute staff visited Europe to stimulate their scientific interests. Galerkin visited Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, and Sweden. Galerkin taught students in the mechanical department structural mechanics, i.e., conducted exercises and designing. The lecturer was professor V.L.Kirpichov - a famous scientist in the field of mechanics and the head of the Petersburg Mechanical Scientific School. However, most members also worked in the Polytechnical Institute, including Ivan Bubnov, A.N. Krylov, I.V. Meshcherskiy, and S.P. Timoshenko. In the autumn of 1911, Galerkin also worked at the Women's Polytechnical Institute. In 1913, he worked on the design of the metallic frame for a boiler power plant in St. Petersburg - the first building with metallic frame under big loads in Russia. Later it was considered to be one of Europe's unique engineering objects. Galerkin regularly published his works in the institutes "Transactions", and since 1915 - also in Engineering News. Before 1915, pivot systems were