# Questions tagged [leibniz]

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### How did the idea of a formal derivation emerge?

Infinitesimal calculus and the introduction of derivatives is often linked to Newton and Leibniz. I was wondering, when and why the idea of studying formal derivatives (e.g., of a formal polynomial) ...
53 views

### Did Leibniz ever express any opinion about Aristotle, Plato or Archimedes?

Since Leibniz is known to have expressed opinions about Descartes' and Newton's abilities maybe he did the same for the prominent thinkers of antiquity. Did Leibniz ever express any opinion about ...
1k views

### Where did Leibniz explore the product rule of differential calculus?

In what book/letter did Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz explore the product rule as part of differential calculus?
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### Why do we use Leibniz's “version” of calculus instead of Newton's?

I understand that they invented calculus independently at roughly the same time, but why do we use Leibniz's terminology/notation rather than Newton's? For example, why don't we use "fluxion"...
333 views

### Source of claim that Leibniz discovered separation of variables for ODEs in 1691?

Claims I'm evaluating I've read in multiple sources that Leibniz formulated separation of variables for ODEs in 1691. A couple example sources are below. Mathematical Thought from Ancient to Modern ...
3k views

### What does it mean by "d-ism of Leibniz" and "dotage of Newton" in simple English?

I am reading this article by Donald E. Knuth and get stuck by this sentence: Our mathematical language continues to improve, just as “the d-ism of Leibniz overtook the dotage of Newton” in past ...
807 views

### Why is differentiation under the integral sign named the Leibniz rule?

The question here asked why differentiation under the integral sign is named "Feynman's trick". That is a comparatively recent name for the method. Aside from the name "differentiation under the ...
941 views

### Was English mathematics behind Europe by many years because of Newton's notation?

Below are several quotes suggesting that Newton's notation had the effect of retarding English mathematics by 50 years, 100 years, or even centuries. Here is my simplistic two-sentence historical ...
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### What was the mechanical principle of Leibniz's "integraph"?

For a very long time I've searched in the internet what was the actual integrating device which Leibniz designed in 1693. Yesterday I found the answer - the instrument which Leibniz devised is the ...
115 views

### Did Leibniz also design analog computers?

My question is based on the information that appears in several websites, according to which I found three examples of a kind of instrument that was probably an analog computer. The first one ...
140 views

### What navigation instrument did Leibniz develop?

My question refers to Gottfried Leibniz's "instrumentum longuitidimum" mentioned in some sites — a device that could record the course of a ship in sea and display its recent position directly on a ...
218 views

### How did Leibniz's prototypes of a yaw system and a braking mechanism (for windmills) work?

My question is concerned with two hardly mentioned yet very ingenious inventions of Leibniz. These two inventions represent technological inventiveness and visionary insight (about wind energy ...
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### What kind of mathematical education did Leibniz have?

It doesn't seem that he began his life in mathematics. Does anyone know how it came to be ? What did he read ?
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### Did Leibniz use infinite numbers?

Arthur's recent article Arthur, Richard T. W. Leibniz's actual infinite in relation to his analysis of matter. G. W. Leibniz, interrelations between mathematics and philosophy, 137–156, Archimedes,...