MIDDLE AGES AND REVIVAL
Medieval Europe. The Roman
civilization has not left an appreciable trace in mathematics as was too
involved in the solving of practical problems. A civilization developed in
Europe of the early Middle Ages (around 400-1100 AD), was not productive for
the opposite reason: the intellectual life has concentrated almost exclusively
on theology and future life. The level of mathematical knowledge did not rise
above arithmetics and simple sections from Euclid’s "Beginnings”. In Middle
Ages the astrology was considered as the most important section of mathematics;
astrologists named mathematicians.
About 1100 in the
West-European mathematics began almost three-century period of development
saved by arabs and the Byzantian Greeks of a heritage of the Ancient world and
the East. Europe has received the extensive mathematical literature because of
arabs owned almost all works of ancient Greeks. Translation of these works into
Latin promoted rise of mathematical researches. All great scientists of that
time recognized, that scooped inspiration in works of Greeks.
The first European
mathematician deserving a mention became Leonardo Byzantian (Fibonacci). In the
composition "the Book Abaca” (1202) he has acquainted Europeans with the Indо-Arabian figures and methods of
calculations and also with the Arabian algebra. Within the next several
centuries mathematical activity in Europe came down.
Revival. Among the best
geometers of Renaissance there were the artists developed idea of prospect
which demanded geometry with converging parallel straight lines. The artist
Leon Batista Alberty (1404-1472) has entered concepts of a projection and
section. Rectilinear rays of light from an eye of the observer to various
points of a represented stage form a projection; the section turns out at
passage of a plane through a projection. That the drawn picture looked
realistic, it should be such section. Concepts of a projection and section
generated only mathematical questions. For example, what general geometrical
properties the section and an initial stage, what properties of two various
sections of the same projection, formed possess two various planes crossing a
projection under various corners? From such questions also there was a
projective geometry. Its founder - Z. Dezarg (1593-1662 AD) with the help of
the proofs based on a projection and section, unified the approach to various
types of conic sections which great Greek geometer Apollonius considered
separately.
I think that mathematics
developed by attempts and mistakes. There is no perfect science today. Also
math has own mistakes, but it aspires to be more accurate. A development of
math goes thru a development of the society. Starting from counting on fingers,
finishing on solving difficult problems, mathematics prolong it way of
development. I suppose that it’s no people who can say what will be in 100-200
or 500 years. But everybody knows that math will get new level, higher one. It
will be new high-tech level and new methods of solving today’s problems. May in
the future some man will find mistakes in our thinking, but I think it’s good,
it’s good that math will not stop.
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