All Questions
4,412
questions
2
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71
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What happened to the data from the survey that discovered the first pulsars?
The first pulsars, starting with B1919+21, were discovered in the late 1960s in data from the Interplanetary Scintillation Array at Cambridge. The data from the telescope was recorded on paper by four ...
- 8,393
2
votes
1
answer
148
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When did derivative mean not only "slope of tangent" but also "instantaneous rate of change"?
When did derivative mean not only "slope of tangent" but also "instantaneous rate of change"?
Fermat was interested in minima and maxima, and realized these occur when the tangent ...
- 163
2
votes
0
answers
94
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How was the Fundamental Theorem of Calculus discovered?
How was the Fundamental Theorem of Calculus discovered?
The FTC is at once simple enough that Math.SE is full of questions asking "why is it such a big deal" and yet avoided discovery for ...
- 163
4
votes
1
answer
132
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How did Kelvin square his low estimate of the age of the sun with the geological evidence?
Kelvin famously disputed geological estimates of the age of the earth because he said gravitational collapse couldn’t fuel the sun long enough. But even if gravitational collapse, not fusion, had been ...
12
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2
answers
3k
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How did the shift from constructed mathematical objects to modern mathematics occur?
How did the shift from the times of Thales, Pythagoras, and even Euclid, where mathematical objects were found, exhibited, or constructed from given entities, to modern mathematics occur? In modern ...
- 1,289
2
votes
1
answer
244
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Why is the claim that $\pi$ contains all natural numbers thought by the general public to be proven, despite it being conjecture currently?
We've all heard the popular claim that the expansion of $\pi$ contains every natural number; however, as we can see from numerous sources, such as Mathematics Stack Exchange and Wikipedia, it is ...
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2
votes
1
answer
227
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Where did Lagrange write his technique of resolvents for solving polynomials?
From Andrew Ellinor & Satyajit Mohanty's article on a technique for solving cubics:
Using Lagrange's resolvents, to solve the cubic, one has to first solve a quadratic. Given the general cubic, $$...
- 409
5
votes
1
answer
211
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Who first called $\mathrm e$ "Euler's number"?
Euler is usually credited with denoting this number with the letter $\mathrm e$. But
It seems unlikely that Euler chose the letter because it is the initial of his own name, as occasionally been ...
user18522
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0
answers
83
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Improvement to the classification and labeling in a list of mathematical references
I'm the maintainer of the Hyper-complex number List,
I am searching for some help in respect of the categorization, clasification regarding the List. I really like references in the line of the List, ...
- 1
4
votes
1
answer
94
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How and by whom was the magnetic term in the Hamiltonian first derived?
The Hamiltonian of a charged particle in a magnetic field is: $$H=\frac{1}{2m}(\frac{h}{2\pi i}\nabla-qA)^2+q\phi$$
Can anybody help me find out when, how and by whom was it first derived?
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3
votes
1
answer
111
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Why did Maxwell predict radiation pressure?
I know that Kepler thought based on comet tail that light might exert pressure (although is the Solar wind not also involved?) but did Maxwell's prediction stem from newer observations or from perhaps ...
- 1,101
3
votes
0
answers
40
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Resources to learn about the state of academia in the early 1900s?
Was not sure if I could ask this in the Academia Stack Exchange as the question is a little bit meta, so HSM looked like a more appropriate place. Apologies if that's not the case.
There is currently ...
- 291
2
votes
0
answers
140
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Why did Clifford Algebra suddenly gain a resurgence under the name of Geometric Algebra in recent years?
To my understanding, this new Geometric algebra thing is actually nothing more than years old Clifford Algebra. Yet it is advertised by many of its proponents as a fundamentally new thing; why is that?...
4
votes
1
answer
133
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How and by whom was the concept of generalized eigenvectors developed?
In general, a linear operator on a complex vector space need not always have an eigenspace decomposition. But it will always have enough generalized eigenvectors to provide a decomposition of the ...
- 401
1
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0
answers
67
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Who actually invented the Big Bang theory?
The Big Bang theory is famously attributed to Lemaître .
In a moment of rare sentience, I decided to consult Georges Lemaître's works to find out what the original Big Bang theory looked like. After a ...
- 409
6
votes
3
answers
2k
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Have all of Euler's works been translated?
I am interested in reading Euler's works.
The Euler Archive contains some translated works but not all of them. I am just checking here to see if anyone know a complete translation of all of Euler's ...
- 409
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0
answers
33
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Granville Wood's Telegraph -- do we know the data rate and range?
I realize this is more a history of engineering question but I do not see a SE devoted to this so I thought I would ask here.
https://suiter.com/granville-woods-railway-telegraphy-patent-no-373383/ ...
- 1,101
2
votes
1
answer
443
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How do I find a list of all works published by a Physicist?
So far I've been checking Wikipedia listings, the university websites of the physicist in question, some databases like OA.mg, and literature searches at university websites. But it’s all scattered, ...
- 409
6
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1
answer
1k
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Could ancient astronomers have proven heliocentrism?
Could ancient astronomers have proven heliocentrism and, if so, how could they have done so?
- 375
2
votes
1
answer
95
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Did the Ptolemaic system have rotating center of the deferent for Venus?
I've come across this diagram of the Ptolemaic model. Am I understanding correctly that this means that all the planets' deferents rotate around a point which next to Earth, while Venus' deferent ...
- 375
0
votes
0
answers
39
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Reference explaining the history and motivation behind Heyting algebra?
I'm starting to have an interest in Heyting Algebras and their application in topological spaces. Is there any paper/reference which gives a history based exposition of it's ideas?
7
votes
1
answer
905
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What is the earliest mention of doubling grains on a chessboard story?
This is a story that seems to be an obligatory mention in either sequence and series lessons or exponential functions and today I've decided to track down the transmission of this story.
it goes like ...
- 409
1
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0
answers
117
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Origin of the Christoffel symbol
I am interested in the Christoffel symbol. So I found Christoffel's 1869 paper and The Road to Reality by Roger Penrose. These days, the Christoffel symbol has been established as a covariant ...
- 131
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0
answers
68
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How did Newton, Lagrange, Hamilton and others ideate their mechanical formulations?
What exactly did Lagrange do, historically? This is very relevant but the accepted answer just does similar speculations based on contextual details that I have done. It was mentioned that part of ...
- 409
3
votes
1
answer
294
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Why did systems theory never gain popularity?
Briefly from wikipedia,
Systems theory is the interdisciplinary study of systems, i.e. cohesive groups of interrelated, interdependent components that can be natural or human-made. Every system has ...
1
vote
1
answer
92
views
Light propagated instantaneously rather than gradually
In the following paper from I. Bernard Cohen, "Roemer and the First Determination of the Velocity of Light (1676)" published on Isis (1940):
Can be read:
explaining that the delay would ...
- 291
1
vote
1
answer
123
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If Math is Based on Unprovable Axioms and these Axioms can't be Proven - Why Does Math "Work" so Well? [closed]
If Math is Based on Unprovable Axioms and can't be Proven - Why Does Math "Work" so Well?
I have heard that both Mathematics and Religions are based on "axioms" that are by ...
- 149
1
vote
0
answers
91
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Were many (famous) theoretical laws in science based on "Statistical Regression"?
In a essay about the meaning of life, the famous scientist Schrodinger once said "Physical laws rest on atomic statistics and are therefore only approximate" (http://www.whatislife.ie/...
- 149
1
vote
1
answer
207
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What are some examples of galactic algorithms that have become practical?
On the Wikipedia article for galactic algorithm (an algorithm that only becomes efficient when the inputs are so large that the algorithm is not used in practice), one of the use cases is that
...
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0
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0
answers
88
views
Who discovered the real Jordan form?
The real Jordan form is here. I want to know who discovered this form. I searched google academics for a long time but couldn't get an answer.
- 1
1
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0
answers
84
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What physical problems required the invention of the derivative?
I know that Fermat had a method of adequality in order to solve certain optimization. One such problem was: "Suppose that you have a rectangle of material and need to cut corners into it such ...
- 491
2
votes
0
answers
125
views
What motivated Grassman to study Grassman algebras in 1844?
These are $n$-tuples of reals, added componentwise and multiplied via the “exterior product.” They were introduced by Grassmann in 1844 as part of a brilliant attempt to construct a vector algebra in $...
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0
answers
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optimal shot angle [duplicate]
Our modern maths readily provides the answer to this ancient question. When shooting a projectile, what is the optimal angle that will maximise the range?
Some trigonometry and Newtonian mechanics ...
- 101
2
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0
answers
89
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Was there a view of a figure as a set of points before set theory?
A circle can be written as the solution set of an equation $x^2+y^2=1$.
I have heard that Fermat associated figures with equations in the 17th century.
Did people see figures as sets of points before ...
- 151
1
vote
1
answer
62
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Origin and justification for stating the second law of thermodynamics as $dS=d_{\rm{e}}S+d_{\rm{i}}S$?
The second law of thermodynamics is sometimes stated as:
$dS=d_{\rm{e}}S+d_{\rm{i}}S$
with :
$dS$, the variation of entropy of the system;
$d_{\rm{e}}S$, the entropy exchanged with or supplied to the ...
- 111
1
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0
answers
102
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When was it known that natural numbers and rational numbers correspond one-to-one?
I would not be surprised if ancient mathematicians had found it.
- 151
9
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5
answers
2k
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Can we estimate the first appearance of popular science books?
Is it possible to say which was the first popular science book? I was reading this question Einstein's readings of popular sciences as a kid , and started wondering how far back this kind of ...
- 2,678
4
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0
answers
81
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Hamilton's pocket-book entry on quaternions
I've long known the story of Hamilton carving the defining equations of the quaternions into the Broome (aka Brougham) Bridge, and have been aware for some years that there is no trace of the original ...
- 331
1
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0
answers
84
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Darwin and the Natives of Tierra del Fuego
Darwin and the ship Beagle, as well as every other ship entering the Pacific ocean had to sail through the treacherous waters of the Land of Fire at the tip of South America. Many ships didn't make ...
- 151
3
votes
7
answers
548
views
Examples of flattering comments from a famous scientist concerning a young colleague
I want to know examples of very flattering comments from famous scientists or mathematicians concerning younger colleagues. Here's an example of what I have in mind (I shall provide more as an answer):...
- 5,718
1
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2
answers
197
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In a survey of historical science has anyone studied the propensity of other departments to co-opt scientific terminology to further their own ideas?
For example, Albert Einstein complained that sociology departments across the quad were using his theory of relativity to advance the idea of "relativistic morality."
The meaning of ...
- 151
4
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6
answers
332
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Examples of mathematicians who applied to patent their work
MIT's RSA encryption was granted a patent although it was not enforced for non-commercial applications. Similarly for Stanford's PGP encryption algorithm. However, these are institutions rather than ...
- 6,679
1
vote
1
answer
126
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Did Skolem have any siblings?
The biographies of Thoralf Skolem focus on his scientific achievements. I could not find any data regarding whether he was an only child or had siblings.
- 135
4
votes
1
answer
73
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The case of Felix Exner and Brownian motion
I'm reading some articles about the history of Brownian Motion, for example, that of Maiocchi (https://www.jstor.org/stable/4026755) or Genthon (https://arxiv.org/pdf/2006.05399.pdf), and they all ...
- 223
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votes
2
answers
176
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In Middle Ages Europe, Physical scientists referred to the "Queen of Sciences"; what was this?
We often hear scientists write of the Queen of Sciences. To what were they referring? And is it relevant in today's research?
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1
vote
1
answer
88
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When was the first time the number 0 came to mean a multiple of ten? [closed]
The earliest number notation I can find is the sexagesimal digit notation of cuneiform. From my understanding of that, in order to make numbers bigger than 60, you would just add the smaller numbers ...
- 189
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0
answers
121
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On Einstein's argument at the beginning of his PhD thesis
In Investigations on the theory of Brownian movement, he says that osmosis holds for solute particles but not for Brownian ones, since they are too big to pass through a permeable membrane.
So what? ...
- 223
1
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0
answers
100
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A question concerning the history of Maxwell's equations
So I am writing my thesis around the Maxwell equations, in one part I saw to speak about their history. The issue is, I found conflicting pieces of information as to who enunciated the laws first.
Let'...
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0
answers
78
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Were ancient astronomers (Babylonians, Egyptians or Greeks) aware of the solar analemma?
Is there any proof or even just indication that they did: I can't find anything online and was hoping for some help.
- 375
3
votes
2
answers
349
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What was so hard about discovering/inventing the number zero?
This question's pretty simple really. A concept of the number 0 is a major landmark that's used when discussing advanced civilizations in pre-modern history. It was something that civilizations came ...
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