Mathematics is a generalized term that encompasses many different branches within. To name a few there is Geometry that deals with shapes, Calculus that deals with rates of change, Arithmetic that deals with counting and many more. To ask what is mathematics is like asking what is life. There is no definitive answer.
One of the significant discoveries within the history of mathematics would have to be the discovery of zero. The Mayans independently discovered the concept of zero without any communication from the outside world. Islamic civilizations discovered this concept as well and many other important mathematical findings.
Off of the top of my head and doing no research, the next important discovery would have to go to Issac Newton and Gottfried Leibniz for their work in the development of infinitesimal calculus.
Mathematical tools are also very important to consider. Starting with an early counting object called an abacus and progressing to the TI-84 calculator took not only a lot of time, but a lot of mathematics.
There are many more of these discoveries and yet there are still more to be found. To rank them in significance seems odd but chronologically might make more sense. Mathematics builds on itself. We first learn Arithmetic and then move on to basic Geometry and Algebra. We do not start with Calculus and work backwards.
No comments:
Post a Comment