A NUMBER OF mathematicians and academics have urged Cork City Council to take steps to preserve the home of mathematician George Boole, which is facing possible demolition after some internal floors collapsed last week.
Dr Brian Coghlan of Trinity College Dublin and Dr Des MacHale of University College Cork said allowing the building at No 5 Grenville Place near to collapse would be a huge loss to science tourism in Cork.
Dr Coghlan said the building had been in a state of dereliction for over a year but the latest internal collapse may mean it will have to be demolished.
"George Boole lived at No 5 Grenville Place when he was first appointed professor of mathematics in UCC, or Queen's College Cork as it was then, in 1849 and it was there that he wrote his major work, The Laws of Thought, in 1854," said Dr Coghlan. "George Boole was the father of computer science and is known the world over."
Cork City Council culture director Valerie O’Sullivan said the “main concern is ensuring the building is not a danger to the public and we’re currently looking at our options in terms of whether or not it will have to be demolished”.