Numerical Assessments in the Work of Vito Volterra

The modern developments in mathematical biology took place roughly between 1920 and 1940: the eminent Italian mathematician Vito Volterra played a decisive role in it. In this work a brief description is contained of the life and work of Volterra, within the frame of reference given by the Italian historic period in which he lived. The aim, in particular, is to outline the numerical assessments pervading the research achievements of the Italian scientist. To this aim, a class of the most famous problems are recalled, that were faced by Volterra in the field of mathematical biology. The solution to such a problem is numerically obtained, via both classic methods and a more recent geometric approach, and visualized, by exploiting the resources of an integrated, uniform and versatile framework for scientific calculus and graphics