Introduction
Publishing over 150 works, Carl Friedrich Gauss, born in Brunswick, Germany (1777), is notably a world-renowned mathematician. He has contributed to some of the most influential and fundamental theories and concepts in mathematics including geometry, probability theory, number theory, the theory of functions, planetary astronomy and most importantly the theorem of algebra. Being born into a underprivileged family, Gauss was fortunate enough to have his mother and uncle recognise his genius abilities for mathematics and thus, provided him with education to further his gift. Gauss attended college, devoting his life to mathematics, discovering and unearthing major mathematical concepts along the way, which he kept in private diaries until they were perfect enough for publishing. Gauss is considered to be alongside Isaac Newton and Archimedes, as one of the three greatest mathematicians of all time.
Mathematical Concepts
Fundamental Theory of Algebra
Gauss significantly contributed to the fundamental theory of algebra in more ways than one. After finishing college (1792) he discovered that a ruler and compass alone could construct a regular polygon of 17 sides. This was a substantial finding as it opened the door to later ideas of the Galois theory, through not only results but also proof, found in analysis of the factorisation of polynomial equations. This foundation of knowledge he created lead to him being the first mathematician to give rigorous proof of the theorem. This theorem was first stated by d’Alembert (1764), but was fully proved by Gauss at the age of 21, leading to his doctoral thesis (1797), which provided further evidence of the fundamental theorem of algebra. All three proofs can be located in the th...
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...ms that are present in today’s society would not be possible without Gauss’s effort on number theory.
• Besides providing attributes such as the Fundamental Theorem of Algebra to mathematics Gauss also contributed to the developmental principle of the Conservation of Energy, discovered Ceres, an asteroid orbiting around the sun and presented the Method of Least Squares, which is a method used in all sciences to minimise the impact of measurement error. Without these contributions both mathematicians and scientists would not have the knowledge and equipment to continue to further these issues.
• On a basic note, Gauss’s theorems and theories have enabled a smoother transaction in everyday life, whether known or not by individuals, his works have left an everlasting imprint on the development of mathematics in areas including technology and practical problem solving.
Theodor Seuss Geisel was born on march 2nd of 1904, in Springfield, Massachusetts. After service in the army during world war two, he went advertising. For a time, he was made on an editorial cartoonist for PM Newpaper in NYC.In 1958 founded Beginner Books Inc. Random House became a division in 1960 of educational and informational films for children. Two documentary films that he made during the period, Hitler Lives and Design for death, later received Academy Awards. In 1957 Geisel became founding president
Geometry, a cornerstone in modern civilization, also had its beginnings in Ancient Greece. Euclid, a mathematician, formed many geometric proofs and theories [Document 5]. He also came to one of the most significant discoveries of math, Pi. This number showed the ratio between the diameter and circumference of a circle.
In Chapter 2 of Journey Through Genius, titled “Euclid’s Proof of the Pythagorean Theorem,” the author, William Dunham, begins by introducing the Greek contributions to mathematics. The first figure introduced, Plato, brought enthusiasm to the subject. He was not an actual mathematician; he was a philosopher. His main contribution to math was establishing the Academy, a center devoted to “learning and contemplation for talented scholars.” The Academy was mainly focused on mathematics and produced talented scholars, such as Eudoxus.
As I was looking for a theorem to prove for my Mathematics SL internal assessment, I couldn’t help but read about Fermat’s Little Theorem, a theorem I never heard of before. Looking into the theorem and reading about it made me develop an interest and genuine curiosity for this theorem. It was set forth in the 16th century by a French lawyer and amateur mathematician named Pierre de Fermat who is given credit for early developments that led to infinitesimal calculus. He made significant contributions to analytic geometry, probability, and optics. Fermat is best known for Fermat’s last theorem. Nevertheless, for the purpose of this investigation I will study his little theorem one of the beautiful proofs in Mathematics.
Euclid, who lived from about 330 B.C.E. to 260 B.C.E., is often referred to as the Father of Geometry. Very little is known about his life or exact place of birth, other than the fact that he taught mathematics at the Alexandria library in Alexandria, Egypt during the reign of Ptolemy I. He also wrote many books based on mathematical knowledge, such as Elements, which is regarded as one of the greatest mathematical/geometrical encyclopedias of all time, only being outsold by the Bible.
Leonardo wrote numerous books regarding mathematics. The books include his own contributions, which have become very significant, along with ancient mathematical skills that needed to be rev...
No other scholar has affected more fields of learning than Blaise Pascal. Born in 1623 in Clermont, France, he was born into a family of respected mathematicians. Being the childhood prodigy that he was, he came up with a theory at the age of three that was Euclid’s book on the sum of the interior of triangles. At the age of sixteen, he was brought by his father Etienne to discuss about math with the greatest minds at the time. He spent his life working with math but also came up with a plethora of new discoveries in the physical sciences, religion, computers, and in math. He died at the ripe age of thirty nine in 1662(). Blaise Pascal has contributed to the fields of mathematics, physical science and computers in countless ways.
He created the height and distance in geometry. He also invented another theorem called the intercept theorem. Thales intercept theorem states that DE = AE = AD
Two years after Argand's proof, Gauss published a second proof of the Fundamental Theorem of Algebra. Gauss used Euler's approach but instead of operating with roots, Gauss operated with indeterminates. This proof was considered complete and correct. A third proof was written by Gauss and like the first, was topological in nature. In 1849 Gauss produced his 4th proof of the Fundamental Theorem of Algebra. This was different in that he proved that a polynomial equation of degree n with complex coefficients has n complex roots.
The Scientific Revolution was sparked through Nicolaus Copernicusí unique use of mathematics. His methods developed from Greek astr...
...Gauss was an incredible mathematician that founded ideas in the fields of geometry, statistics, number theory, statistics, and more. He was able to change the attitudes of mathematicians everywhere with his curious, but brilliant and logical mind and find solutions to problems they have had for hundreds of years. His work is so important and useful that it is still used today in math fields and classes everywhere. The inclusion of Gauss in the history of mathematics is an important one and without his exceptional mind modern day math would be almost entirely different than it is.
However, between 1850 and 1900 there were great advances in mathematics and physics that began to rekindle the interest (Osborne, 45). Many of these new advances involved complex calculations and formulas that were very time consuming for human calculation.
Burton, D. (2011). The History of Mathematics: An Introduction. (Seventh Ed.) New York, NY. McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
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 abo...
Between 1850 and 1900, the mathematics and physics fields began advancing. The advancements involved extremely arduous calculations and formulas that took a great deal of time when done manually.