Profiles and Prospects*
Indian Journal of History of Science, 47.3 (2012) 473-512 MATHEMATICS AND MATHEMATICAL RESEARCHES IN INDIA DURING FIFTH TO TWENTIETH CENTURIES — PROFILES AND PROSPECTS* A K BAG** (Received 1 September 2012) The Birth Centenary Celebration of Professor M. C. Chaki (1912- 2007), former First Asutosh Birth Centenary Professor of Higher Mathematics and a noted figure in the community of modern geometers, took place recently on 21 July 2012 in Kolkata. The year 2012 is also the 125th Birth Anniversary Year of great mathematical prodigy, Srinivas Ramanujan (1887-1920), and the Government of India has declared 2012 as the Year of Mathematics. To mark the occasion, Dr. A. K. Bag, FASc., one of the students of Professor Chaki was invited to deliver the Key Note Address. The present document made the basis of his address. Key words: Algebra, Analysis, Binomial expansion, Calculus, Differential equation, Fluid and solid mechanics, Function, ISI, Kerala Mathematics, Kut..taka, Mathemtical Modeling, Mathematical Societies - Calcutta, Madras and Allahabad, Numbers, Probability and Statistics, TIFR, Universities of Calcutta, Madras and Bombay, Vargaprakr.ti. India has been having a long tradition of mathematics. The contributions of Vedic and Jain mathematics are equally interesting. However, our discussion starts from 5th century onwards, so the important features of Indian mathematics are presented here in phases to make it simple. 500-1200 The period: 500-1200 is extremely interesting in the sense that this is known as the Golden (Siddha–ntic) period of Indian mathematics. It begins * The Key Note Address was delivered at the Indian Association for Cultivation of Science (Central Hall of IACS, Kolkata) organized on behalf of the M.C.
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