Authoritative and highly readable, this global survey is suited to those with no background in math as well as more informed readers and teachers. Presented in a chronological and thematic manner, the
" A global survey of the history of mathematics, this newly corrected and updated collection of 32 highly readable essays features contributions by such distinguished educators as Carl Boyer and Morri
Cambridge in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries was a place of sharp contrasts. At one extreme a gifted minority studied mathematics intensively for the Tripos, the honours degree. At the other, most undergraduates faced meagre academic demands and might idle their time away. The dons, the fellows of the colleges that constituted the University, were chosen for their Tripos performance and included scholars of international reputation such as Whewell and Sidgwick, but also men who treated their fellowships as sinecures. A pillar of the Church of England that denied membership to non-Anglicans, the University functioned largely as a seminary, while teaching more mathematics than theology. This volume describes the complex institution of the University, and also the beginnings of its transformation after 1850 - under the pressure of public opinion and the State - into the University as it exists today: inclusive in its membership, diverse in its curricula, and staffed by committed s
Cambridge University's Lucasian Professorship of Mathematics is one of the most celebrated academic positions in the world. Since its foundation in 1663, the chair has been held by seventeen men who represent some of the best and most influential minds in science and technology. Principally a social history of mathematics and physics, the story of these great natural philosophers and mathematical physicists is told here by some of the finest historians of science. The journey begins with the search for a benefactor able to establish a 'mathematicus professor honorarius', and travels through the life and work of the professors, exploring aspects from the heroic to the absurd. Covering both the great similarities and the extreme differences in mathematical physics over the last four centuries, this informative work offers interesting perspectives on world-famous scientists including Isaac Newton, Charles Babbage, G. G. Stokes, Paul Dirac and Stephen Hawking.
Cambridge University's Lucasian Professorship of Mathematics is one of the most celebrated academic positions in the world. Since its foundation in 1663, the chair has been held by seventeen men who represent some of the best and most influential minds in science and technology. Principally a social history of mathematics and physics, the story of these great natural philosophers and mathematical physicists is told here by some of the finest historians of science. The journey begins with the search for a benefactor able to establish a 'mathematicus professor honorarius', and travels through the life and work of the professors, exploring aspects from the heroic to the absurd. Covering both the great similarities and the extreme differences in mathematical physics over the last four centuries, this informative work offers interesting perspectives on world-famous scientists including Isaac Newton, Charles Babbage, G. G. Stokes, Paul Dirac and Stephen Hawking.
This book is a collection of articles, all by the author, on the Indian mathematical genius Srinivasa Ramanujan as well as on some of the greatest mathematicians throughout the history whose life and
This collection of papers from various areas of mathematical logic showcases the remarkable breadth and richness of the field. Leading authors reveal how contemporary technical results touch upon foundational questions about the nature of mathematics. Highlights of the volume include: a history of Tennenbaum's theorem in arithmetic; a number of papers on Tennenbaum phenomena in weak arithmetics as well as on other aspects of arithmetics, such as interpretability; the transcript of Gödel's previously unpublished 1972–1975 conversations with Sue Toledo, along with an appreciation of the same by Curtis Franks; Hugh Woodin's paper arguing against the generic multiverse view; Anne Troelstra's history of intuitionism through 1991; and Aki Kanamori's history of the Suslin problem in set theory. The book provides a historical and philosophical treatment of particular theorems in arithmetic and set theory, and is ideal for researchers and graduate students in mathematical logic and philosophy o
This book examines the influence of some musical problems on the development of sciences. It presents a multicultural history and features numerous excerpts from key texts which are quoted in their or
Math's infinite mysteries unfold in this new paperback edition of the bestselling The Math Book. Beginning millions of years ago with ancient “ant odometers” and moving through time to our modern-day
In this unique insight into the history and philosophy of mathematics and science in the mediaeval Arab world, the eminent scholar Roshdi Rashed illuminates the various historical, textual and epistem
This volume provides a unique primary source on the history and philosophy of mathematics and the exact sciences in the mediaeval Arab world. The second of five comprehensive volumes, this book offers
James Gow's A Short History of Greek Mathematics (1884) provided the first full account of the subject available in English, and it today remains a clear and thorough guide to early arithmetic and geometry. Beginning with the origins of the numerical system and proceeding through the theorems of Pythagoras, Euclid, Archimedes and many others, the Short History offers in-depth analysis and useful translations of individual texts as well as a broad historical overview of the development of mathematics. Parts I and II concern Greek arithmetic, including the origin of alphabetic numerals and the nomenclature for operations; Part III constitutes a complete history of Greek geometry, from its earliest precursors in Egypt and Babylon through to the innovations of the Ionic, Sophistic, and Academic schools and their followers. Particular attention is given to Pythagorus, Euclid, Archimedes, and Ptolemy, but a host of lesser-known thinkers receive deserved attention as well.
Table of Contents:1. The Sixteenth and Early Seventeenth Centuries.- 1.1. Introduction.- 1.2. Napier and Logarithms.- 1.3. Briggs and His Logarithms.- 1.4. Bürgi and His Antilogarithms.- 1.5. Interpolation.- 1.6. Vieta and Briggs.- 1.7. Kepler.- 2. The Age of Newton.- 2.1. Introduction.- 2.2. Logarithms and Finite Differences.- 2.3. Trigonometric Tables.- 2.4. The Newton-Raphson and Other Iterative Methods.- 2.5. Finite Differences and Interpolation.- 2.6. Maclaurin on the Euler-Maclaurin Formula.- 2.7. Stirling.- 2.8. Leibniz.- 3. Euler and Lagrange.- 3.1. Introduction.- 3.2. Summation of Series.- 3.3. Euler on the Euler-Maclaurin Formula.- 3.4. Applications of the Summation Formula.- 3.5. Euler on Interpolation.- 3.6. Lunar Theory.- 3.7. Lagrange on Difference Equations.- 3.8. Lagrange on Functional Equations.- 3.9. Lagrange on Fourier Series.- 3.10. Lagrange on Partial Difference Equations.- 3.11. Lagrange on Finite Differences and Interpolation.- 3.12. Lagrange on Hidden Periodicit
