The history of math has become an important study, from ancient to modern times it has been fundamental to advances in science, engineering, and philosophy. Mathematics started with counting. In Babylonia mathematics developed from 2000B. C. A place value notation system had evolved over a lengthy time with a number base of 60. Number problems were studied from at least 1700B. C. Systems of linear equations were studied in the context of solving number problems. The basic of mathematics was inherited by the Greeks and independent by the Greeks beg the major Greek progress in mathematics was from 300 BC to 200 AD.
After this time progress continued in Islamic countries Unlike the Babylonians, the Egyptians did not develop fully their understanding of mathematics. Instead, they concerned themselves with practical applications of mathematics. Mathematics flourished in particular in Iran, Syria and India from 450B. C. Major progress in mathematics in Europe began again at the beginning of the 16th Century. The 17th Century saw Napier, Briggs and others greatly extend the power of mathematics as a calculator science with his discovery of logarithms.
Cavalieri made progress towards the calculus with his infinitesimal methods and Descartes added the power of algebraic methods to geometry. Euclid, who lived around 300 BC in Alexandria, first stated his five postulates in his book The Elements that forms the base for all of his later Abu Abd-Allah ibn Musa al’Khwarizmi, was born about AD 790 near Baghdad, and died about 850. His most contribution was algebra. Many say that the Babylonians first developed systems of quadratic equations, the Babylonians had no concept of an equation.
The history of Pi encompasses many centuries. From the Babylonians, are 3. 1415. Another is from the Egyptians, 3 1/8 or 3. 125, which could be concluded to indicate that they believed a circle with diameter nine has the same area as a square of diameter 8. In 1897, Edwin J. Goodman, MD introduced and got passed a bill into the Indiana State House of Representatives which stated that “the ratio of the diameter and circumference is as five-fourths to four. ” Pi has baffled and intrigued scientists and mathematicians for thousands of years.
Trigonometry is an area of mathematics used for determining geometric quantities. Its name, first published in 1595 by B. Pitiscus, means “the study of trigons (triangles)” in Latin. Ancient Greek Mathematicians first used trigonometric functions with the chords of a circle. The first to publish these chords in 140 BC was Hipparchus, who is now called the founder of trigonometry. In AD 100, Menelaus, another Greek mathematician, published six lost books of tables of chords. Ptolemy, a Babylonian, also wrote a book of chords.
Trigonometry has been used throughout modern and ancient history dealing with practical applications, such as surveying of just triangles. Modernly, it has incorporated many other ideas instead Chaos theory is “the study of complex nonlinear dynamic systems” (Chaos Introduction). Chaos theory has very many applications of real life. It is used to study population, epidemiology, and heart palpitations. Also, the study of fractals has been looked at more closely. Mathematics represents a high level of abstraction attained by the human mind.
In India, mathematics has its roots in Vedic literature which is nearly 4000 years old. Between 1000 B. C. and 1000 A. D. various treatises on mathematics were authored by Indian mathematicians in which were set forth for the first time, the concept of zero, the techniques of algebra and algorithm, square root and cube root calculations. In India around the 5th century A. D. a sys tem of mathematics that made astronomical calculations easy was developed. In those times its application was limited to astronomy as its pioneers were Astronomers.
As trinomial calculations are complex and involve many variables that go into the derivation of unknown quantities. Algebra is a short-hand method of The Indian system of mathematics could no have escaped their attention. It was also the age of the Islamic Renaissance and the Arabs generally improved upon the arts and sciences that they imbibed from the land they overran during their great Jehad. The system of mathematics they observed in India was adapted by them and given the name ‘Al-Jabr’ meaning ‘the reunion of broken parts’. ‘Al’ means ‘The’ & ‘Jabr’ mean ‘reunion’.
This name given by the Arabs indicates that they took it from an external source and amalgamated it with their concepts about mathematics. But even in the area of Geometry, Indian mathematicians had their contribution. In 1900 David Hilbert went to the second International Congress of Mathematicians in Paris to give an invited paper. He spoke on The Problems of Mathematics, to such effect that Hermann Weyl later referred to anyone who solved one of the 23 problems that Hilbert presented as entering the honors class of mathematicians. Throughout the 20th century the solution of a problem was the occasion for praise and celebration.
