All Questions
4,412
questions
4
votes
2
answers
460
views
Who are the youngest mathematicians that published an original research article in a peer-reviewed journal?
There a lot of intresting informations about young mathematicians, but I cannot find an information about the youngest mathematician that published an original research article in a peer-reviewed ...
- 41
2
votes
0
answers
70
views
What is Cardano trying to say in this passage of his Ars Magna Arithmeticæ?
It is well known that Cardano considered the problem of "dividing 10
into two parts the product of which is 40" in his Ars Magna. This problems leads to the complex solutions $5+ \sqrt{-15}$ ...
- 121
6
votes
0
answers
143
views
How did the concept of pH originate and develop?
Background & My research
To begin I did some research to find a few articles on the history of pH namely "The Symbol for pH" - William B. Jensen, "One-Hundred Years of pH" - ...
- 161
3
votes
8
answers
423
views
What are some famous named groups of scientists?
Scientists are often associated together and get famous group names. In physics, I know of
Via Panisperna boys (Enrico Fermi and co. working in Rome in nuclear physics)
Princeton string quartet (...
- 2,678
0
votes
0
answers
42
views
Why is Power in an electric circuit equal to VI? [closed]
Where did this formula come from? Everyone I asked just told me to substitute values of in ohms law to derive this but no one told why is power equal to voltage * current. Part of the reason for this ...
- 1
3
votes
2
answers
135
views
Dirac’s debt to Hamilton
According to Tobias Hurter’s popular exposition Too Big for a Single Mind (narrated in the present tense):
Dirac makes use of an elegant mathematical tool developed by the Irish mathematician William ...
- 331
1
vote
0
answers
117
views
How did someone discover LCM?
How did someone came up with an idea that if we do prime factorization of two numbers and then multiply all the prime factors but including common ones only once, we will get a number that is the ...
- 11
6
votes
2
answers
641
views
Origin of exact and closed differential expressions
In differential geometry and other fields, an expression involving differentials can be closed or exact. In $\mathbb R^2\setminus\{0\}$ for example, $dr$ is exact whereas $d\theta$ is closed but not ...
- 4,952
0
votes
0
answers
48
views
Need a reference for Euler's velocity initial condition for the wave equation
In DOI: 10.4236/ahs.2020.94019 235 Advances in Historical Studies, p.234
D’Alembert and the Wave Equation: Its Disputes and Controversies, or https://www.scirp.org/pdf/ahs_2020112716312281.pdf p.6 of ...
- 173
0
votes
0
answers
60
views
In JJ Thomson's cathode ray experiment I need values for the electric field and magnetic field when net force on the cathode beam = 0
I asked here as well https://chemistry.stackexchange.com/questions/177889/in-jj-thomsons-cathode-ray-experiment-why-is-effects-of-gravity-on-electron-not
https://physics.stackexchange.com/questions/...
- 11
3
votes
2
answers
157
views
Seeking Comprehensive References on the History of Scientific Notation
I am on a quest to uncover the rich tapestry of history surrounding scientific notation as a way of expressing numbers. Specifically, I'm interested in scholarly books, peer-reviewed articles, and ...
0
votes
1
answer
73
views
How did Schrödinger do quantum mechanics with wave functions?
On my way to learn about the very beginning of quantum mechanics and its different formulations, starting with Heisenberg infinite matrices and Schrödinger's wave functions, I can really not find till ...
0
votes
1
answer
98
views
Euclid's use of antenaresis and Heath's commentary
In Book 7, Prop. 1. Euclid uses repeated subtraction to prove that two numbers are relatively prime. As explained here the Greek word for repeated subtraction is "antenaresis". There isn't ...
- 257
-2
votes
0
answers
71
views
Did Emmy Noether know quaternion? [closed]
I am looking at the quaternion, and it is said that this concept was invented by a man named 'William Rowan Hamilton' while taking a walk.
And I looked the properties of this concept, it is quite ...
- 131
2
votes
1
answer
152
views
How did Emmy Noether become interested in abstract algebra?
Emmy Noether was initially interested in invariant theory. But how did she become interested in abstract algebra? And why did she become particularly interested in ring and ideal theory?
- 131
0
votes
0
answers
30
views
First recorded use of oxymel to treat wounds
What is the first recorded use of a mixure of honey and vinegar to treat wounds?
Cato the Elder indicates it was used during Roman times, but it's unclear if this was as a tonic or if it was used to ...
- 375
4
votes
0
answers
109
views
Is there existing footage of Stanislaw Mazur giving Per Enflo a live goose for solving the approximation problem?
There is a famous incident in the history of mathematics involving the mathematician Per Enflo being awarded a live goose by Stanislaw Mazur for solving problem 153 in the Scottish Book by ...
- 141
1
vote
0
answers
77
views
Whence Whitehead's essence?
In the article Quine’s New Foundations of The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Summer 2019 Edition), Thomas Forster writes:
In [1944] Hailperin gave the first of a number of finite ...
0
votes
0
answers
29
views
Asymptotically similar functions with opposite parity, were they considered, are they useful? Quasi-parabolas [closed]
So, can we transform an even function into an odd function and vice versa?
Let's consider this method:
Transformation even->odd:
Suppose $f_{even}(x)$ is a function which satisfies the following ...
- 642
3
votes
2
answers
97
views
Who postulated the first Lagrangian for electrodynamics?
I am trying to find who first translated Maxwell's equations and Lorentz's force into the Lagrangian formalism. It seems a very straightforward thing to do if you know enough of electromagnetism and ...
- 2,678
11
votes
1
answer
1k
views
What was the motivation for the choice of the subset symbol?
I gather that the symbols $\subset$ and $\supset$ were introduced by Ernst Schröder in his 1890 Vorlesungen über die Algebra der Logik. This account also appears—attributed to good old Cajori—in an ...
- 225
1
vote
1
answer
159
views
Was "potency set" used for power set?
Cross posted at Math Overflow
For historical reasons, the English term "power set" in set theory is a translation of the German "Potenzmenge", which is still in use in German ...
0
votes
0
answers
43
views
The Langevin twins
When did exactly the Langevin twins occur in relativity?
My first idea was to simply look up Langevin's original paper (in 1911), but he never mentions them to be twins :
our traveller would need ...
- 753
23
votes
6
answers
7k
views
What scientists and mathematicians were afraid to publish their findings?
Background
I am interested in scientists and mathematicians that were afraid to publish their findings during their lifetime, and to what degree such fears hinder scientific progress.
So far, I've ...
- 511
11
votes
1
answer
2k
views
Did Newton know about non-inertial frames?
When answering a Physics.SE question, I made a claim that Newton realized that $F=ma$ worked in some frames, which are called "inertial frames." Nowadays, we know that there are non-...
- 283
9
votes
1
answer
3k
views
Did Newton say: "If I have ever made any valuable discoveries, it has been due more to patient attention, than to any other talent"?
I came across the above quote, and found it quite interesting. However, I struggled to find an actual source. Did Newton truly say this?
- 331
0
votes
1
answer
90
views
Book on the evolution of Quantum Theory
Can anyone recommend some good book(s) on the Evolution of Quantum Theory, focusing on history, not necessarily on explaining the technical/math part?
The books I have read so far,
"Quantum: ...
- 101
0
votes
1
answer
155
views
Did Einstein really explain Relativity using the hot stove/pretty girl analogy and if so why?
I am pretty sure that Albert Einstein explained special relativity by saying in effect, sitting on a hot stove for a minute can seem like an hour; sit with a pretty girl for an hour and it might seem ...
- 1,101
4
votes
2
answers
375
views
Reference request: What were the problems of accepting zero, negative numbers, and complex numbers? And how were they solved?
I asked this question on MSE and comments suggested I should ask it here
I am currently reading Baby Rudin as my second analysis book (after Introduction to Real Analysis by Robert G. Bartle and ...
- 101
3
votes
0
answers
126
views
How did Hindu-Arabic Numerals get their shapes?
I’ve noticed a recurring post on social media that presents an image suggesting the shapes of Hindu-Arabic numerals are connected to the angles within their design:
This claim seems dubious to me.
I ...
0
votes
0
answers
46
views
Reference request: What were the problems of accepting zero, negative numbers, and complex numbers? And how were they solved? [duplicate]
I didn't know that can happen and since I already asked the question here I don't know what to do with this question should I delete it ?
I am currently reading Baby Rudin as my second analysis book (...
- 101
5
votes
1
answer
155
views
Seeking Source of this Pythagorean Quote "Number is the ruler of forms and ideas, and the cause of gods and demons."
I've encountered the quote "Number is the ruler of forms and ideas, and the cause of gods and demons," which is frequently attributed to Pythagoras. My objective is to ascertain the ...
1
vote
0
answers
54
views
What was the last "hole" in the electromagnetic spectrum where amplified, tunable, narrow-band power couldn't be produced artificially?
We had radio amplifiers that could transmit powerful signals and those were pushed to microwaves. We had lasers that were originally natural transitions in solids and gasses but now tunable lasers go ...
- 2,098
2
votes
1
answer
65
views
How did the earliest measurements of lasers bounced off of Apollo 11 retroreflectors deal with the light from the Moon and pick out single photons?
Wikipedia's Lunar Laser Ranging Experiments; History mentions the first lasers ever bounced off the whole Moon were in 1962, and probably both the US and Soviet groups used Q-switched ruby lasers.
In ...
- 2,098
2
votes
1
answer
55
views
What laser technology/ies were first used to bounce off of the Apollo 11 retroreflectors to accurately measure distance to the Moon?
Wikipedia's Lunar Laser Ranging Experiments; History mentions the first lasers ever bounced off the whole Moon were in 1962, and probably both the US and Soviet groups used Q-switched ruby lasers.
In ...
- 2,098
0
votes
1
answer
107
views
A summary of Major events in Pre-Modern Atomist Philosophy of Chemistry [closed]
When I started learning about Laws related to "constant proportions" and other hypothesis like "all matter is composed of smallest indivisible particles", I didn't notice it was ...
- 101
2
votes
0
answers
78
views
Who evaluated the surface of the Torricelli solid/Gabriel's horn
The Torricelli solid/Gabriel's Horn is defined as the rotation-invariant solid delimited by a hyperbola. It appears in De solido hyperbolico acuto where Torricelli proves that it has a finite volume, ...
0
votes
0
answers
45
views
What substances from the body did Boyle try when attempting to produce phosphorus?
According to Wikipedia, Hennig Brand discovered phosphorous. Later, Robert Boyle desired to replicate Brand's discovery, but didn't know that urine was used - only that it involved something that &...
- 101
3
votes
1
answer
201
views
Is it true that before Milton Friedman, "no one believed that inflation was mainly a monetary phenomenon"?
Russ Roberts (host of EconTalk podcast) claimed on his (2021-08-16) podcast:
Before he [Milton Friedman] came along, ... no one believed that inflation was mainly a monetary phenomenon.
His guest ...
- 222
4
votes
1
answer
146
views
Did anyone apply for a patent based on sphere packing?
Some while ago we had a question about mathematicians patenting their work Examples of mathematicians who applied to patent their work I was about to answer when I realised I needed to find a ...
- 547
2
votes
1
answer
181
views
Did Fibonacci not grasp the idea of zero?
Indian mathematicians (e.g., Brahmagupta in the 6th century) developed the idea of 0 as more than a placeholder.
In 1202, Fibonacci wrote "These are the nine figures of the Indians: 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 ...
- 21
0
votes
0
answers
163
views
Why Serre need to develop the concept of "sheaf theory" in algebraic geometry? [duplicate]
I read Edward Frenkel's Love and Math. But reanding this book made me wonder about origin of the concept of the sheaf used in algebraic geometry. I think the conclusion that I came to in the process ...
- 131
4
votes
2
answers
226
views
How did Scott and Amundsen detect the South Pole?
How did Scott and Amundsen detect the direction to the South Pole during their expedition? How did they determine the exact South Pole on reaching there?
Comparison of the Amundsen and Scott ...
- 165
0
votes
0
answers
61
views
Group theory in non-European/subaltern cultures?
I'm doing undergraduate research on the history of abstract algebra (specifically permutation groups) and the notion of symmetric groups in indigenous artwork has come up several times. Is anyone ...
- 1
4
votes
0
answers
172
views
Who proposed terminating decimals as a major set and why are them important in France?
After looking at some school sources in French, it is common to provide the various number sets in the following order
$$\mathbb{N}\subset \mathbb{Z}\subset\mathbb{D}\subset\mathbb{Q}\subset\mathbb{R}\...
- 2,678
0
votes
0
answers
53
views
Did J. W. Gibbs “invent” Hilbert spaces before Hilbert formulated the notion of such spaces?
I was surprised to see a reply to a comment on his answer to a Quora question by a research mathematician claiming that Hilbert spaces were actually due to J. W. Gibbs rather than to D. Hilbert. The ...
0
votes
0
answers
63
views
Fatio de Dullier's Theory of Gravity -- Why ridiculed in 17th/18th century?
I read in Newton and the Counterfeiter about the young mathematician who was friends with Sir Isaac and competent enough to have detected an error in Principia.
He offered a theory of gravity, I ...
- 1,101
1
vote
0
answers
107
views
Historical Accounts of Confusion in Alphabetic Number Systems?
I’m delving into the intriguing world of alphabetic number systems (greek, for instance), where letters serve a dual purpose—forming words and representing numerical values.
I’m curious about the ...
0
votes
0
answers
47
views
Tesla tried to replicate Hertz's experiment?
Jan Rak, in his NAMI-tech SEM 2023 lecture (@12:53), claims:
However, at the time Nicola Tesla […] was trying to replicate the Hertz experiment, and he was unsuccessful. He discovered some other ...
- 5,229
1
vote
1
answer
96
views
$l^p$ space definition
Usually, when studying the applications and results of a theory, it becomes clear why it was interesting to define it in a certain way. However, I'm currently beginning my studies in functional ...
- 111