The Greek Age of Mathematics Contents
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Load more
Recommended publications
-
Center of Mass and Centroids
Center of Mass and Centroids Center of Mass A body of mass m in equilibrium under the action of tension in the cord, and resultant W of the gravitational forces acting on all particles of the body. -The resultant is collinear with the cord Suspend the body at different points -Dotted lines show lines of action of the resultant force in each case. -These lines of action will be concurrent at a single point G As long as dimensions of the body are smaller compared with those of the earth. - we assume uniform and parallel force field due to the gravitational attraction of the earth. The unique Point G is called the Center of Gravity of the body (CG) ME101 - Division III Kaustubh Dasgupta 1 Center of Mass and Centroids Determination of CG - Apply Principle of Moments Moment of resultant gravitational force W about any axis equals sum of the moments about the same axis of the gravitational forces dW acting on all particles treated as infinitesimal elements. Weight of the body W = ∫dW Moment of weight of an element (dW) @ x-axis = ydW Sum of moments for all elements of body = ∫ydW From Principle of Moments: ∫ydW = ӯ W Moment of dW @ z axis??? xdW ydW zdW x y z = 0 or, 0 W W W Numerator of these expressions represents the sum of the moments; Product of W and corresponding coordinate of G represents the moment of the sum Moment Principle. ME101 - Division III Kaustubh Dasgupta 2 Center of Mass and Centroids xdW ydW zdW x y z Determination of CG W W W Substituting W = mg and dW = gdm xdm ydm zdm x y z m m m In vector notations: -
A Genetic Context for Understanding the Trigonometric Functions Danny Otero Xavier University, [email protected]
Ursinus College Digital Commons @ Ursinus College Transforming Instruction in Undergraduate Pre-calculus and Trigonometry Mathematics via Primary Historical Sources (TRIUMPHS) Spring 3-2017 A Genetic Context for Understanding the Trigonometric Functions Danny Otero Xavier University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/triumphs_precalc Part of the Curriculum and Instruction Commons, Educational Methods Commons, Higher Education Commons, and the Science and Mathematics Education Commons Click here to let us know how access to this document benefits oy u. Recommended Citation Otero, Danny, "A Genetic Context for Understanding the Trigonometric Functions" (2017). Pre-calculus and Trigonometry. 1. https://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/triumphs_precalc/1 This Course Materials is brought to you for free and open access by the Transforming Instruction in Undergraduate Mathematics via Primary Historical Sources (TRIUMPHS) at Digital Commons @ Ursinus College. It has been accepted for inclusion in Pre-calculus and Trigonometry by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ Ursinus College. For more information, please contact [email protected]. A Genetic Context for Understanding the Trigonometric Functions Daniel E. Otero∗ July 22, 2019 Trigonometry is concerned with the measurements of angles about a central point (or of arcs of circles centered at that point) and quantities, geometrical and otherwise, that depend on the sizes of such angles (or the lengths of the corresponding arcs). It is one of those subjects that has become a standard part of the toolbox of every scientist and applied mathematician. It is the goal of this project to impart to students some of the story of where and how its central ideas first emerged, in an attempt to provide context for a modern study of this mathematical theory. -
Dynamics of Urban Centre and Concepts of Symmetry: Centroid and Weighted Mean
Jong-Jin Park Research École Polytechnique Fédérale de Dynamics of Urban Centre and Lausanne (EPFL) Laboratoire de projet urbain, Concepts of Symmetry: territorial et architectural (UTA) Centroid and Weighted Mean BP 4137, Station 16 CH-1015 Lausanne Presented at Nexus 2010: Relationships Between Architecture SWITZERLAND and Mathematics, Porto, 13-15 June 2010. [email protected] Abstract. The city is a kind of complex system being capable Keywords: evolving structure, of auto-organization of its programs and adapts a principle of urban system, programmatic economy in its form generating process. A new concept of moving centre, centroid, dynamic centre in urban system, called “the programmatic weighted mean, symmetric moving centre”, can be used to represent the successive optimization, successive appearances of various programs based on collective facilities equilibrium and their potential values. The absolute central point is substituted by a magnetic field composed of several interactions among the collective facilities and also by the changing value of programs through time. The center moves continually into this interactive field. Consequently, we introduce mathematical methods of analysis such as “the centroid” and “the weighted mean” to calculate and visualize the dynamics of the urban centre. These methods heavily depend upon symmetry. We will describe and establish the moving centre from a point of view of symmetric optimization that answers the question of the evolution and successive equilibrium of the city. In order to explain and represent dynamic transformations in urban area, we tested this programmatic moving center in unstable and new urban environments such as agglomeration areas around Lausanne in Switzerland. -
Positional Notation Or Trigonometry [2, 13]
The Greatest Mathematical Discovery? David H. Bailey∗ Jonathan M. Borweiny April 24, 2011 1 Introduction Question: What mathematical discovery more than 1500 years ago: • Is one of the greatest, if not the greatest, single discovery in the field of mathematics? • Involved three subtle ideas that eluded the greatest minds of antiquity, even geniuses such as Archimedes? • Was fiercely resisted in Europe for hundreds of years after its discovery? • Even today, in historical treatments of mathematics, is often dismissed with scant mention, or else is ascribed to the wrong source? Answer: Our modern system of positional decimal notation with zero, to- gether with the basic arithmetic computational schemes, which were discov- ered in India prior to 500 CE. ∗Bailey: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA. Email: [email protected]. This work was supported by the Director, Office of Computational and Technology Research, Division of Mathematical, Information, and Computational Sciences of the U.S. Department of Energy, under contract number DE-AC02-05CH11231. yCentre for Computer Assisted Research Mathematics and its Applications (CARMA), University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW 2308, Australia. Email: [email protected]. 1 2 Why? As the 19th century mathematician Pierre-Simon Laplace explained: It is India that gave us the ingenious method of expressing all numbers by means of ten symbols, each symbol receiving a value of position as well as an absolute value; a profound and important idea which appears so simple to us now that we ignore its true merit. But its very sim- plicity and the great ease which it has lent to all computations put our arithmetic in the first rank of useful inventions; and we shall appre- ciate the grandeur of this achievement the more when we remember that it escaped the genius of Archimedes and Apollonius, two of the greatest men produced by antiquity. -
Archimedes' Principle
General Physics Lab Handbook by D.D.Venable, A.P.Batra, T.Hubsch, D.Walton & M.Kamal Archimedes’ Principle 1. Theory We are aware that some objects oat on some uids, submerged to diering extents: ice cubes oat in water almost completely submerged, while corks oat almost completely on the surface. Even the objects that sink appear to weigh less when they are submerged in the uid than when they are not. These eects are due to the existence of an upward ‘buoyant force’ that will act on the submerged object. This force is caused by the pressure in the uid being increased with depth below the surface, so that the pressure near the bottom of the object is greater than the pressure near the top. The dierence of these pressures results in the eective ‘buoyant force’, which is described by the Archimedes’ principle. According to this principle, the buoyant force FB on an object completely or partially submerged in a uid is equal to the weight of the uid that the (submerged part of the) object displaces: FB = mf g = f Vg . (1) where f is the density of the uid, mf and V are respectively mass and the volume of the displaced uid (which is equal to the volume of the submerged part of the object) and g is the gravitational acceleration constant. 2. Experiment Object: Use Archimedes’ principle to measure the densities of a given solid and a provided liquid. Apparatus: Solid (metal) and liquid (oil) samples, beaker, thread, balance, weights, stand, micrometer, calipers, PASCO Science Workshop Interface, Force Sensors and a Macintosh Computer. -
The Diophantine Equation X 2 + C = Y N : a Brief Overview
Revista Colombiana de Matem¶aticas Volumen 40 (2006), p¶aginas31{37 The Diophantine equation x 2 + c = y n : a brief overview Fadwa S. Abu Muriefah Girls College Of Education, Saudi Arabia Yann Bugeaud Universit¶eLouis Pasteur, France Abstract. We give a survey on recent results on the Diophantine equation x2 + c = yn. Key words and phrases. Diophantine equations, Baker's method. 2000 Mathematics Subject Classi¯cation. Primary: 11D61. Resumen. Nosotros hacemos una revisi¶onacerca de resultados recientes sobre la ecuaci¶onDiof¶antica x2 + c = yn. 1. Who was Diophantus? The expression `Diophantine equation' comes from Diophantus of Alexandria (about A.D. 250), one of the greatest mathematicians of the Greek civilization. He was the ¯rst writer who initiated a systematic study of the solutions of equations in integers. He wrote three works, the most important of them being `Arithmetic', which is related to the theory of numbers as distinct from computation, and covers much that is now included in Algebra. Diophantus introduced a better algebraic symbolism than had been known before his time. Also in this book we ¯nd the ¯rst systematic use of mathematical notation, although the signs employed are of the nature of abbreviations for words rather than algebraic symbols in contemporary mathematics. Special symbols are introduced to present frequently occurring concepts such as the unknown up 31 32 F. S. ABU M. & Y. BUGEAUD to its sixth power. He stands out in the history of science as one of the great unexplained geniuses. A Diophantine equation or indeterminate equation is one which is to be solved in integral values of the unknowns. -
Lesson 3: Rectangles Inscribed in Circles
NYS COMMON CORE MATHEMATICS CURRICULUM Lesson 3 M5 GEOMETRY Lesson 3: Rectangles Inscribed in Circles Student Outcomes . Inscribe a rectangle in a circle. Understand the symmetries of inscribed rectangles across a diameter. Lesson Notes Have students use a compass and straightedge to locate the center of the circle provided. If necessary, remind students of their work in Module 1 on constructing a perpendicular to a segment and of their work in Lesson 1 in this module on Thales’ theorem. Standards addressed with this lesson are G-C.A.2 and G-C.A.3. Students should be made aware that figures are not drawn to scale. Classwork Scaffolding: Opening Exercise (9 minutes) Display steps to construct a perpendicular line at a point. Students follow the steps provided and use a compass and straightedge to find the center of a circle. This exercise reminds students about constructions previously . Draw a segment through the studied that are needed in this lesson and later in this module. point, and, using a compass, mark a point equidistant on Opening Exercise each side of the point. Using only a compass and straightedge, find the location of the center of the circle below. Label the endpoints of the Follow the steps provided. segment 퐴 and 퐵. Draw chord 푨푩̅̅̅̅. Draw circle 퐴 with center 퐴 . Construct a chord perpendicular to 푨푩̅̅̅̅ at and radius ̅퐴퐵̅̅̅. endpoint 푩. Draw circle 퐵 with center 퐵 . Mark the point of intersection of the perpendicular chord and the circle as point and radius ̅퐵퐴̅̅̅. 푪. Label the points of intersection . -
Squaring the Circle a Case Study in the History of Mathematics the Problem
Squaring the Circle A Case Study in the History of Mathematics The Problem Using only a compass and straightedge, construct for any given circle, a square with the same area as the circle. The general problem of constructing a square with the same area as a given figure is known as the Quadrature of that figure. So, we seek a quadrature of the circle. The Answer It has been known since 1822 that the quadrature of a circle with straightedge and compass is impossible. Notes: First of all we are not saying that a square of equal area does not exist. If the circle has area A, then a square with side √A clearly has the same area. Secondly, we are not saying that a quadrature of a circle is impossible, since it is possible, but not under the restriction of using only a straightedge and compass. Precursors It has been written, in many places, that the quadrature problem appears in one of the earliest extant mathematical sources, the Rhind Papyrus (~ 1650 B.C.). This is not really an accurate statement. If one means by the “quadrature of the circle” simply a quadrature by any means, then one is just asking for the determination of the area of a circle. This problem does appear in the Rhind Papyrus, but I consider it as just a precursor to the construction problem we are examining. The Rhind Papyrus The papyrus was found in Thebes (Luxor) in the ruins of a small building near the Ramesseum.1 It was purchased in 1858 in Egypt by the Scottish Egyptologist A. -
The Satrap of Western Anatolia and the Greeks
University of Pennsylvania ScholarlyCommons Publicly Accessible Penn Dissertations 2017 The aS trap Of Western Anatolia And The Greeks Eyal Meyer University of Pennsylvania, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations Part of the Ancient History, Greek and Roman through Late Antiquity Commons Recommended Citation Meyer, Eyal, "The aS trap Of Western Anatolia And The Greeks" (2017). Publicly Accessible Penn Dissertations. 2473. https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations/2473 This paper is posted at ScholarlyCommons. https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations/2473 For more information, please contact [email protected]. The aS trap Of Western Anatolia And The Greeks Abstract This dissertation explores the extent to which Persian policies in the western satrapies originated from the provincial capitals in the Anatolian periphery rather than from the royal centers in the Persian heartland in the fifth ec ntury BC. I begin by establishing that the Persian administrative apparatus was a product of a grand reform initiated by Darius I, which was aimed at producing a more uniform and centralized administrative infrastructure. In the following chapter I show that the provincial administration was embedded with chancellors, scribes, secretaries and military personnel of royal status and that the satrapies were periodically inspected by the Persian King or his loyal agents, which allowed to central authorities to monitory the provinces. In chapter three I delineate the extent of satrapal authority, responsibility and resources, and conclude that the satraps were supplied with considerable resources which enabled to fulfill the duties of their office. After the power dynamic between the Great Persian King and his provincial governors and the nature of the office of satrap has been analyzed, I begin a diachronic scrutiny of Greco-Persian interactions in the fifth century BC. -
Unaccountable Numbers
Unaccountable Numbers Fabio Acerbi In memoriam Alessandro Lami, a tempi migliori HE AIM of this article is to discuss and amend one of the most intriguing loci corrupti of the Greek mathematical T corpus: the definition of the “unknown” in Diophantus’ Arithmetica. To do so, I first expound in detail the peculiar ter- minology that Diophantus employs in his treatise, as well as the notation associated with it (section 1). Sections 2 and 3 present the textual problem and discuss past attempts to deal with it; special attention will be paid to a paraphrase contained in a let- ter of Michael Psellus. The emendation I propose (section 4) is shown to be supported by a crucial, and hitherto unnoticed, piece of manuscript evidence and by the meaning and usage in non-mathematical writings of an adjective that in Greek math- ematical treatises other than the Arithmetica is a sharply-defined technical term: ἄλογος. Section 5 offers some complements on the Diophantine sign for the “unknown.” 1. Denominations, signs, and abbreviations of mathematical objects in the Arithmetica Diophantus’ Arithmetica is a collection of arithmetical prob- lems:1 to find numbers which satisfy the specific constraints that 1 “Arithmetic” is the ancient denomination of our “number theory.” The discipline explaining how to calculate with particular, possibly non-integer, numbers was called in Late Antiquity “logistic”; the first explicit statement of this separation is found in the sixth-century Neoplatonic philosopher and mathematical commentator Eutocius (In sph. cyl. 2.4, in Archimedis opera III 120.28–30 Heiberg): according to him, dividing the unit does not pertain to arithmetic but to logistic. -
15 Famous Greek Mathematicians and Their Contributions 1. Euclid
15 Famous Greek Mathematicians and Their Contributions 1. Euclid He was also known as Euclid of Alexandria and referred as the father of geometry deduced the Euclidean geometry. The name has it all, which in Greek means “renowned, glorious”. He worked his entire life in the field of mathematics and made revolutionary contributions to geometry. 2. Pythagoras The famous ‘Pythagoras theorem’, yes the same one we have struggled through in our childhood during our challenging math classes. This genius achieved in his contributions in mathematics and become the father of the theorem of Pythagoras. Born is Samos, Greece and fled off to Egypt and maybe India. This great mathematician is most prominently known for, what else but, for his Pythagoras theorem. 3. Archimedes Archimedes is yet another great talent from the land of the Greek. He thrived for gaining knowledge in mathematical education and made various contributions. He is best known for antiquity and the invention of compound pulleys and screw pump. 4. Thales of Miletus He was the first individual to whom a mathematical discovery was attributed. He’s best known for his work in calculating the heights of pyramids and the distance of the ships from the shore using geometry. 5. Aristotle Aristotle had a diverse knowledge over various areas including mathematics, geology, physics, metaphysics, biology, medicine and psychology. He was a pupil of Plato therefore it’s not a surprise that he had a vast knowledge and made contributions towards Platonism. Tutored Alexander the Great and established a library which aided in the production of hundreds of books. -
Theon of Alexandria and Hypatia
CREATIVE MATH. 12 (2003), 111 - 115 Theon of Alexandria and Hypatia Michael Lambrou Abstract. In this paper we present the story of the most famous ancient female math- ematician, Hypatia, and her father Theon of Alexandria. The mathematician and philosopher Hypatia flourished in Alexandria from the second part of the 4th century until her violent death incurred by a mob in 415. She was the daughter of Theon of Alexandria, a math- ematician and astronomer, who flourished in Alexandria during the second part of the fourth century. Information on Theon’s life is only brief, coming mainly from a note in the Suda (Suida’s Lexicon, written about 1000 AD) stating that he lived in Alexandria in the times of Theodosius I (who reigned AD 379-395) and taught at the Museum. He is, in fact, the Museum’s last attested member. Descriptions of two eclipses he observed in Alexandria included in his commentary to Ptolemy’s Mathematical Syntaxis (Almagest) and elsewhere have been dated as the eclipses that occurred in AD 364, which is consistent with Suda. Although originality in Theon’s works cannot be claimed, he was certainly immensely influential in the preservation, dissemination and editing of clas- sic texts of previous generations. Indeed, with the exception of Vaticanus Graecus 190 all surviving Greek manuscripts of Euclid’s Elements stem from Theon’s edition. A comparison to Vaticanus Graecus 190 reveals that Theon did not actually change the mathematical content of the Elements except in minor points, but rather re-wrote it in Koini and in a form more suitable for the students he taught (some manuscripts refer to Theon’s sinousiai).