Biography
Poul la Cour was born on April 13, 1846 on a farm near Ebeltoft in Denmark. His father was a modern farmer introducing new technology at his farm as the first among neighbours. However la Cour had his gifts in mathematics from his mother. At Latin school in Randers he performed very poorly in languages and had to give up an early wish to become a priest. His brother Jørgen la Cour (1838–98), who knew the possible directions of study in Copenhagen, soon directed his brother into the new field of meteorology.
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