G. H. Hardy was an English mathematician of the early 20th century, who primarily worked at Trinity College, Cambridge, although he spent the 1920s mainly at New College, Oxford. Hardy is a particular interest of mine for various reasons, on which I intend to expand in this page (eventually). A good starting point for the information you won’t find in the standard biographies is my talk G. H. Hardy, the leading mathematician in England, given to the TMS Centenary Symposium in 2019.
One of Hardy’s consistent mathematical interests (one might prefer “obsessions”) was the evaluation of definite integrals. Indeed, in a letter of November 1926 to D. Coxeter, detailing the evaluation of some integrals the latter requested in the Mathematical Gazette, he writes:
I tried very hard not to spend time on your integrals, but to me the challenge of a definite integral is irresistible.
This has become the motto of several in the small community interested in such things. See my Integrals page for the actual integrals.
Aside from mathematics, Hardy’s other great passion was the game of cricket. His passion for the game is described by his friend C.P. Snow in the foreword to A Mathematician’s Apology, but there is also a far lesser-known amplification of this essay called The Mathematician on Cricket, which I have transcribed here; it is thoroughly interesting and enjoyable for anyone with an interest in Hardy or cricket.
I have started a more extensive website on items related to Hardy here.