Karl Gauss: Biography Karl Gauss lived from 1777 to 1855. He was a German mathematician, physician, and astronomer. He was born in Braunschweig, Germany, on April 30th, 1777. His family was poor and uneducated. His father was a gardener and a merchant's assistant. At a young age, Gauss taught himself how to read and count, and it is said that he spotted a mistake in his father's calculations when he was only three. Throughout the rest of his early schooling, he stood out remarkably from the rest of the students, and his teachers persuaded his father to train him for a profession rather than learn trade. His