Hilbert's first work was on invariant theory and, in 1888, he proved his famous Basis Theorem. Twenty years earlier Gordan had proved the finite basis theorem for binary forms using a highly computational approach.
Hilbert's unang trabaho ay sa invariant teorya at, sa 1888, siya proved kanyang tanyag na Basis teorama. Dalawampung taon na mas maaga Gordan had proved ang hangganan na batayan para sa teorama binary forms gamit ang isang mataas na computational diskarte.