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| Program > Proof, Prediction and Mathematics in Ancient and Islamic Science |
| Programme > Preuve, prédiction et mathématiques dans les sciences antiques et islamiques |
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Van Brummelen (Bennington
College) Analysis, Synthesis, and Computation: From Pure Geometry to Applied Mathematics in Medieval Islam |
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The paired techniques of analysis and synthesis, born in ancient Greece, provided both a direct means to find a path to the solution of a geometrical problem and a way to convert that path into a rigorous proof. In medieval Islam analysis was used in this way, but it was also put to use in the solution of applied problems. We shall concentrate on texts by 10th century geometer Abu Sahl al-Kuhi and 12th-century mathematician Al-Samaw'al, to witness the transformation of geometric analysis to solve the problems of the distance to the shooting stars and the dip angle to the horizon for an elevated observer.
Bennington
College
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