Mathematics in the Metropolis: a Survey of Victorian London
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The History and Development of Numerical Analysis in Scotland: a Personal Perspective∗
The history and development of numerical analysis in Scotland: a personal perspective∗ G. A. Watson, Division of Mathematics, University of Dundee, Dundee DD1 4HN, Scotland. Abstract An account is given of the history and development of numerical analysis in Scotland. This covers, in particular, activity in Edinburgh in the first half of the 20th century, the collaboration between Edinburgh and St Andrews in the 1960s, and the role played by Dundee from the 1970s. I will give some reminiscences from my own time at both Edinburgh and Dundee. 1 Introduction To provide a historical account of numerical analysis (or of anything else), it is necessary to decide where to begin. If numerical analysis is defined to be the study of algorithms for the problems of continuous mathematics [16], then of course it has a very long history (see, for example, [6], [13]). But \modern" numerical analysis is inextricably linked with computing machines. It is usually associated with programmable electronic computers, and is often said to have its origins in the 1947 paper by von Neumann and Goldstine [10]. The name apparently was first used around that time, and was given formal recognition in the setting up of the Institute for Numerical Analysis, located on the campus of the University of California at Los Angeles [3]. This was a section of the National Applied Mathematics Laboratories of the National Bureau of Standards, headed by J. H. Curtiss, who is often given credit for the name. Others consider modern numerical analysis to go back further than this; for example Todd [15] suggests it begins around 1936, and cites papers by Comrie and Turing. -
Euclid's Elements - Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia
Euclid's Elements - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euclid's_Elements Euclid's Elements From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Euclid's Elements (Ancient Greek: Στοιχεῖα Stoicheia) is a mathematical and geometric treatise Elements consisting of 13 books written by the ancient Greek mathematician Euclid in Alexandria c. 300 BC. It is a collection of definitions, postulates (axioms), propositions (theorems and constructions), and mathematical proofs of the propositions. The thirteen books cover Euclidean geometry and the ancient Greek version of elementary number theory. The work also includes an algebraic system that has become known as geometric algebra, which is powerful enough to solve many algebraic problems,[1] including the problem of finding the square root of a number.[2] With the exception of Autolycus' On the Moving Sphere, the Elements is one of the oldest extant Greek mathematical treatises,[3] and it is the oldest extant axiomatic deductive treatment of mathematics. It has proven instrumental in the development of logic and modern science. The name 'Elements' comes from the plural of 'element'. The frontispiece of Sir Henry Billingsley's first According to Proclus the term was used to describe a English version of Euclid's Elements, 1570 theorem that is all-pervading and helps furnishing proofs of many other theorems. The word 'element' is Author Euclid, and translators in the Greek language the same as 'letter'. This Language Ancient Greek, translations suggests that theorems in the Elements should be seen Subject Euclidean geometry, elementary as standing in the same relation to geometry as letters number theory to language. -
James Clerk Maxwell
James Clerk Maxwell JAMES CLERK MAXWELL Perspectives on his Life and Work Edited by raymond flood mark mccartney and andrew whitaker 3 3 Great Clarendon Street, Oxford, OX2 6DP, United Kingdom Oxford University Press is a department of the University of Oxford. It furthers the University’s objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education by publishing worldwide. Oxford is a registered trade mark of Oxford University Press in the UK and in certain other countries c Oxford University Press 2014 The moral rights of the authors have been asserted First Edition published in 2014 Impression: 1 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior permission in writing of Oxford University Press, or as expressly permitted by law, by licence or under terms agreed with the appropriate reprographics rights organization. Enquiries concerning reproduction outside the scope of the above should be sent to the Rights Department, Oxford University Press, at the address above You must not circulate this work in any other form and you must impose this same condition on any acquirer Published in the United States of America by Oxford University Press 198 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016, United States of America British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data Data available Library of Congress Control Number: 2013942195 ISBN 978–0–19–966437–5 Printed and bound by CPI Group (UK) Ltd, Croydon, CR0 4YY Links to third party websites are provided by Oxford in good faith and for information only. -
The Cambridge Mathematical Journal and Its Descendants: the Linchpin of a Research Community in the Early and Mid-Victorian Age ✩
View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Elsevier - Publisher Connector Historia Mathematica 31 (2004) 455–497 www.elsevier.com/locate/hm The Cambridge Mathematical Journal and its descendants: the linchpin of a research community in the early and mid-Victorian Age ✩ Tony Crilly ∗ Middlesex University Business School, Hendon, London NW4 4BT, UK Received 29 October 2002; revised 12 November 2003; accepted 8 March 2004 Abstract The Cambridge Mathematical Journal and its successors, the Cambridge and Dublin Mathematical Journal,and the Quarterly Journal of Pure and Applied Mathematics, were a vital link in the establishment of a research ethos in British mathematics in the period 1837–1870. From the beginning, the tension between academic objectives and economic viability shaped the often precarious existence of this line of communication between practitioners. Utilizing archival material, this paper presents episodes in the setting up and maintenance of these journals during their formative years. 2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Résumé Dans la période 1837–1870, le Cambridge Mathematical Journal et les revues qui lui ont succédé, le Cambridge and Dublin Mathematical Journal et le Quarterly Journal of Pure and Applied Mathematics, ont joué un rôle essentiel pour promouvoir une culture de recherche dans les mathématiques britanniques. Dès le début, la tension entre les objectifs intellectuels et la rentabilité économique marqua l’existence, souvent précaire, de ce moyen de communication entre professionnels. Sur la base de documents d’archives, cet article présente les épisodes importants dans la création et l’existence de ces revues. 2004 Elsevier Inc. -
James Joseph Sylvester1
Chapter 8 JAMES JOSEPH SYLVESTER1 (1814-1897) James Joseph Sylvester was born in London, on the 3d of September, 1814. He was by descent a Jew. His father was Abraham Joseph Sylvester, and the future mathematician was the youngest but one of seven children. He received his elementary education at two private schools in London, and his secondary education at the Royal Institution in Liverpool. At the age of twenty he entered St. John’s College, Cambridge; and in the tripos examination he came out sec- ond wrangler. The senior wrangler of the year did not rise to any eminence; the fourth wrangler was George Green, celebrated for his contributions to mathe- matical physics; the fifth wrangler was Duncan F. Gregory, who subsequently wrote on the foundations of algebra. On account of his religion Sylvester could not sign the thirty-nine articles of the Church of England; and as a consequence he could neither receive the degree of Bachelor of Arts nor compete for the Smith’s prizes, and as a further consequence he was not eligible for a fellowship. To obtain a degree he turned to the University of Dublin. After the theological tests for degrees had been abolished at the Universities of Oxford and Cam- bridge in 1872, the University of Cambridge granted him his well-earned degree of Bachelor of Arts and also that of Master of Arts. On leaving Cambridge he at once commenced to write papers, and these were at first on applied mathematics. His first paper was entitled “An analytical development of Fresnel’s optical theory of crystals,” which was published in the Philosophical Magazine. -
From Arthur Cayley Via Felix Klein, Sophus Lie, Wilhelm Killing, Elie Cartan, Emmy Noether and Superstrings to Cantorian Space–Time
Available online at www.sciencedirect.com Chaos, Solitons and Fractals 37 (2008) 1279–1288 www.elsevier.com/locate/chaos From Arthur Cayley via Felix Klein, Sophus Lie, Wilhelm Killing, Elie Cartan, Emmy Noether and superstrings to Cantorian space–time L. Marek-Crnjac Institute of Mathematics, Physics and Mechanics, Jadranska ulica 19, P.O. Box 2964, SI-1001 Ljubljana, Slovenia Abstract In this work we present a historical overview of mathematical discoveries which lead to fundamental developments in super string theory, super gravity and finally to E-infinity Cantorian space–time theory. Cantorian space–time is a hierarchical fractal-like semi manifold with formally infinity many dimensions but a finite expectation number for these dimensions. The idea of hierarchy and self-similarity in science was first entertain by Right in the 18th century, later on the idea was repeated by Swedenborg and Charlier. Interestingly, the work of Mohamed El Naschie and his two contra parts Ord and Nottale was done independently without any knowledge of the above starting from non- linear dynamics and fractals. Ó 2008 Published by Elsevier Ltd. 1. Introduction Many of the profound mathematical discovery and dare I say also inventions which were made by the mathemati- cians Arthur Cayley, Felix Klein, Sophus Lie, Wilhelm Killing, Elie Cartan and Emmy Noether [1] are extremely important for high energy particles in general [2] as well as in the development of E-infinity, Cantorian space–time the- ory [3,4]. The present paper is dedicated to the historical background of this subject. 2. Arthur Cayley – beginner of the group theory in the modern way Arthur Cayley was a great British mathematician. -
The 1995 Dexter Award Address
Bull. Hist. Chem. 2 (1998) 1 1995 DEXTER AWARD ADDRESS THE CHEMICAL ORIGINS OF PRACTICAL PHYSICS Wll . r, Unvrt f tr I hld l t thn th xtr Crprtn ll In ft, n hlr hv pntd t drn th Chr nd br f th xtr Ard C th lt dd r , th dpln f ph tt, bth prnt nd bnt, fr th hnr. I fl n t td nl rd t lt n th nntnth prd t jn th rtr f ln ln f dtnhd ntr, rfltd b th ft tht bth th rth nd htrn trtn th lph Opr n 6 nd t pll rn t jn th lt f n UK hldr f th hnr tht bn th hn d nd h n ldd h lltr n l MK, J. rtntn, ph dh, nd r rntl h frnd rvr Wll, M. Crlnd, brt Andrn, nd Cln ll. h ltr ddtd t th r f th lt Sdn Edltn. Aprt fr rt nd , ht dtnh n, dn, nd nnrn fr ll thr fr f vtnl trnn th lbrtrrhp l tn n hh t t pl. In th ppr I l t th rltn btn nntnthntr ph nd h tr nd ndr th dvlpnt f prtl ph thn n th UK nd USA. I hv tn tt rr ttrbtd t nn b Sr nr : "En Chr dr n hr t, t r nht" — ht h nt l pht n ht (. Althh drn ph t ht ll ntr th nfrtn tht h tr rl prt f ph, ht ll pt t n th prt tht nn ntndd, nl tht h t hld b ntrl phlphr th brdr pr William H. -
LMS – EPSRC Durham Symposium
LMS – EPSRC Durham Symposium Anthony Byrne Grants and Membership Administrator 12th July 2016, Durham The work of the LMS for mathematics The charitable aims of the Society: Funding the advancement of mathematical knowledge Encouraging mathematical research and collaboration ’, George Legendre Celebrating mathematical 30 Pieces achievements Publishing and disseminating mathematical knowledge Advancing and promoting mathematics The attendees of the Young Researchers in Mathematics Conference 2015, held at Oxford Historical Moments of the London Mathematical Society 1865 Foundation of LMS at University College London George Campbell De Morgan organised the first meeting, and his father, Augustus De Morgan became the 1st President 1865 First minute book list of the 27 original members 1866 LMS moves to Old Burlington House, Piccadilly J.J. Sylvester, 2nd President of the Society. 1866 Julius Plûcker Thomas Hirst Plûcker Collection of boxwood models of quartic surfaces given to Thomas Archer Hirst, Vice- President of LMS, and donated to the Society 1870 Move to Asiatic Society, 22 Albemarle Street William Spottiswoode, President 1874 Donation of £1,000 from John William Strutt (Lord Rayleigh) Generous donation enabled the Society to publish volumes of the Proceedings of the London Mathematical Society. J.W. Strutt (Lord Rayleigh), LMS President 1876-78 1881 First women members Charlotte Angas Scott and Christine Ladd 1884 First De Morgan medal awarded to Arthur Cayley 1885 Sophie Bryant First woman to have a paper published in LMS Proceedings 1916 Return to Burlington House the home of LMS until 1998 1937 ACE ’s Automatic Turing LMS Proceedings, 1937 Computing Engine, published Alan Turing’s first paper 1950 On Computable Numbers 1947 Death of G.H. -
TRINITY COLLEGE Cambridge Trinity College Cambridge College Trinity Annual Record Annual
2016 TRINITY COLLEGE cambridge trinity college cambridge annual record annual record 2016 Trinity College Cambridge Annual Record 2015–2016 Trinity College Cambridge CB2 1TQ Telephone: 01223 338400 e-mail: [email protected] website: www.trin.cam.ac.uk Contents 5 Editorial 11 Commemoration 12 Chapel Address 15 The Health of the College 18 The Master’s Response on Behalf of the College 25 Alumni Relations & Development 26 Alumni Relations and Associations 37 Dining Privileges 38 Annual Gatherings 39 Alumni Achievements CONTENTS 44 Donations to the College Library 47 College Activities 48 First & Third Trinity Boat Club 53 Field Clubs 71 Students’ Union and Societies 80 College Choir 83 Features 84 Hermes 86 Inside a Pirate’s Cookbook 93 “… Through a Glass Darkly…” 102 Robert Smith, John Harrison, and a College Clock 109 ‘We need to talk about Erskine’ 117 My time as advisor to the BBC’s War and Peace TRINITY ANNUAL RECORD 2016 | 3 123 Fellows, Staff, and Students 124 The Master and Fellows 139 Appointments and Distinctions 141 In Memoriam 155 A Ninetieth Birthday Speech 158 An Eightieth Birthday Speech 167 College Notes 181 The Register 182 In Memoriam 186 Addresses wanted CONTENTS TRINITY ANNUAL RECORD 2016 | 4 Editorial It is with some trepidation that I step into Boyd Hilton’s shoes and take on the editorship of this journal. He managed the transition to ‘glossy’ with flair and panache. As historian of the College and sometime holder of many of its working offices, he also brought a knowledge of its past and an understanding of its mysteries that I am unable to match. -
Causes of Poor Performance in West African School Certificate
Ogundele GA et al.; Sch. J. Arts. Humanit. Soc. Sci. 2014; 2(5B):670-676. Scholars Journal of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences ISSN 2347-5374 (Online) Sch. J. Arts Humanit. Soc. Sci. 2014; 2(5B):670-676 ISSN 2347-9493 (Print) ©Scholars Academic and Scientific Publishers (SAS Publishers) (An International Publisher for Academic and Scientific Resources) Causes of Poor Performance in West African School Certificate Examination (WASCE) in Nigeria Ogundele, Gbenga Alexander1, Olanipekun, Shola Sunday2, Aina, Jacob Kola3 1Department of Metal Work, 2General Studies Education Department, 3Physics Education Department, College of Education (Tech.), Lafiagi, P.M.B. 001, Kwara State, Nigeria. *Corresponding Author: Aina, Jacob Kola Email: Abstract: This is a review paper that cantered on poor academic performance generally in the West Africa Senior School Certificate Examination which has become a great concern to various stakeholders in the educational sector, most especially in Nigeria. The paper argued that mass failure of students in public examinations could be traced to several factors that can be compartmentalized into the domains of parents, students, teachers, schools, the language of instruction, government and the society among others. In other words, the causes of mass failure of students in public examinations are multi-dimensional in nature. The paper concluded that mass failure of students in public examinations constitutes wastage on investment in secondary education. The paper recommended that since academic performance is a virile instrument to the national development of any nation; all concerned stakeholders must be responsive to their roles in order to restore hope to the current grotesque academic performance of students in WAEC in Nigeria. -
Reconstructing the Lost Contours of Charles Hutton
Reconstructing the lost contours of Charles Hutton Karen Rann a, David Fairbairn b, *, Ella Southern c a Queens University, Belfast, UK; [email protected] b Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK; [email protected] c Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK; [email protected] * Corresponding author Keywords: Historical land surveying, contour mapping This study reports on an historical investigation of map-making practice and achievement from the late 18th century, and attempts to reconstruct the practices and outcomes of an innovative surveying and mapping exercise, using historical data and contemporary geospatial data handling. The episode involves the processing of data captured as part of an extensive project by the then (British) Astronomer Royal, Maskelyne, in the mid 1770s, to measure the gravitational attraction and density of the earth. This experiment was conducted on the isolated mountain of Schiehallion in Central Scotland, and resulted in several differing approaches to calculating the mass of the mountain, and determining and interpreting the resultant effect on gravity measurements on its slopes. In order to do this, an accurate determination of “the figure and dimensions of the hill” (Maskelyne, 1775) was required. The survey work was undertaken under Maskelyne’s supervision by his previous assistant, Barrow, and local surveyor, Menzies. The data collected included astronomical observations to establish latitudinal positions, lengths of fixed base lines (one to the north of the mountain and one to the south), a standard traverse around the mountain to establish fixed points, and transects/vertical profiles radiating from those points. The land surveying techniques were known and widely used, although at the time having only been recently documented, in the book ‘A Treatise on Mensuration’. -
Cavendish the Experimental Life
Cavendish The Experimental Life Revised Second Edition Max Planck Research Library for the History and Development of Knowledge Series Editors Ian T. Baldwin, Gerd Graßhoff, Jürgen Renn, Dagmar Schäfer, Robert Schlögl, Bernard F. Schutz Edition Open Access Development Team Lindy Divarci, Georg Pflanz, Klaus Thoden, Dirk Wintergrün. The Edition Open Access (EOA) platform was founded to bring together publi- cation initiatives seeking to disseminate the results of scholarly work in a format that combines traditional publications with the digital medium. It currently hosts the open-access publications of the “Max Planck Research Library for the History and Development of Knowledge” (MPRL) and “Edition Open Sources” (EOS). EOA is open to host other open access initiatives similar in conception and spirit, in accordance with the Berlin Declaration on Open Access to Knowledge in the sciences and humanities, which was launched by the Max Planck Society in 2003. By combining the advantages of traditional publications and the digital medium, the platform offers a new way of publishing research and of studying historical topics or current issues in relation to primary materials that are otherwise not easily available. The volumes are available both as printed books and as online open access publications. They are directed at scholars and students of various disciplines, and at a broader public interested in how science shapes our world. Cavendish The Experimental Life Revised Second Edition Christa Jungnickel and Russell McCormmach Studies 7 Studies 7 Communicated by Jed Z. Buchwald Editorial Team: Lindy Divarci, Georg Pflanz, Bendix Düker, Caroline Frank, Beatrice Hermann, Beatrice Hilke Image Processing: Digitization Group of the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science Cover Image: Chemical Laboratory.