François Viète, known in Latin as Franciscus Vieta, was a French mathematician whose work on new algebra was an important step towards modern algebra, due to his innovative use of letters as parameters in equations. Because of this, Viète is sometimes called "the father of modern algebraic notation". He was a lawyer by trade, and served as a privy councillor to both Henry III and Henry IV of France. 1540 – February 23, 1603; died at about 63. Alive at the same time as William Shakespeare, Michelangelo, Francis Bacon, Elizabeth I of England, and Jacques Cartier. Wiki link