This is the home page for the History of Mathematics class. If you are a student in the class, log-in at the top-right and more options will appear in the menus on the left.

What's coming up and what preparation is expected from you will appear in the schedule link on the left.

We are treating the history of math under three differing but somewhat overlapping concepts. We will begin with the question of how people have defined mathematics in the western intellectual tradition starting with modern definitions and working backwards to the Greeks. Second we will investigate specific intellectual developments that helped to separate math from what we now think of as related fields (physics, astronomy, economics, etc.) Finally, we will focus on the specific biographies of a number of mathematicians, keeping the first two broad questions in mind as we think about the elements of their lives that shaped their mathematical thinking. Students will get to propose and study specific mathemeticians for this final segment, but some possible candidates include Pythagorus, Euclid, al-Khwarizmi, Fibonacci, Newton, Gauss, or Erdös. Throughout the course, we will have mathematical examples as well as opportunities to engage with difficult math questions. We will also develop techniques from the history of science, including primary source work, and finally some philosophy of math. There is no math or history prerequisite for the course, but we encourage some familiarity with one or the other discipline.

You are expected to be aware of the college's policy on academic integrity and to abide by it. Please come and talk to us if anything is unclear.

http://cs.marlboro.edu/ courses/ spring2015/history_of_math/ home
last modified Wednesday January 14 2015 12:07 pm EST