Ask Dr. Math

High School Archive

Browse High School History/Biography

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Calculator Addition [6/30/1996]

How does a calculator add?

Chinese Rod-Numeral System [11/09/1998]

How exactly does the Chinese rod-numeral system work?

Collapsible Compass [01/23/2002]

How did the early Greek mathematicians reproduce lengths with a collapsible compass?

Commas and Decimal Points in Currency Notations [11/08/2007]

Why do Europeans use the comma in currency amounts instead of the decimal point as in the United States?

Completing the Cube [11/28/1996]

Is there some method analogous to completing the square for higher dimension polynomials?

Compounding Interest and e [11/11/1998]

How is the number e derived from compounding interest? Does it come from the series expansion of e?

Contribution of Romans in Math History [12/18/2006]

How did the Romans contribute to math? What did they add to mathematics besides Roman numerals?

Converting from Hindu-Arabic Numerals to Roman Numerals [05/18/1999]

A conversion table, and recommendations for using bars over Roman numerals, with examples.

Converting Julian Date to Gregorian [03/20/2001]

Assume that the base date is 01/01/0001 and that a Gregorian date is expressed as DD/MM/YYYY...

Counting Number Angles [10/13/2002]

I am trying to find the history of counting number angles.

Counting Sheep the Traditional Way [10/13/2003]

Do you know anything interesting about mathematics in England, say from 400 to 1200 AD?

Dealing with the Formal Presentation of Mathematics [03/22/2008]

Why do so many of today's mathematicians present their work in such a formal way, hiding their ideas behind all sorts of notation, definitions and the like? Why is there so little explanation of the ideas and concepts? I like math, but I find this aspect of it very annoying.

Decimals and Roman Numerals [10/22/1998]

Is there any notation for fractions in Roman numerals?

Decimal System [08/12/2003]

Why the decimal system? Why not 12 as the base number?

Dedekind Cuts [10/23/1996]

What is a Dedekind cut?

Definitions of Rational, Irrational, and Mathematics [5/9/1995]

Why are rational and irrational numbers called by those names? Also, how do you define Mathematics?

The Degree Symbol [11/02/1998]

Do you know what the degree symbol stands for? What is its history?

Deriving Pi [05/10/2001]

I know that Pi is equivalent to 3.14, but what formulas are used to come up with 3.14?

Development of Einstein's Equation [06/02/1999]

What equations and principles did Einstein use to come up with the equation e = mc^2?

Did Pi Ruin Socrates' Career? [11/3/1994]

This is a math history question. Is it true that Socrates is believed to have been imprisoned for teaching the existence of pi? I understand that the belief in, or the teaching of, the existence of pi was considered heresy in his day.

Does Trying to Square a Circle Cause an Illness? [03/14/2006]

I've heard that people thought that trying to square a circle was an illness. What was that illness called?

Do Pyramids Really Exist? [02/27/2002]

If the base of an isosceles triangle is 4, and the height is 5, then the sides are equal to the square root of 21. How can this triangle exist (except in theory) if you can never measure or draw the square root of 21?

Early Development of Geometry [2/5/1996]

I am trying to find some parallels between the East and the West in the development of early geometry.

Egyptian Fractions [03/21/1999]

Can you help me understand Egyptian fractions?

The Egyptians' Method of False Position [01/16/2003]

How does the method of false position work?

Einstein and Math [3/4/1995]

I have to give a presentation to my class on Albert Einstein and I wondered if you could give me some information on how he related to math or geometry.

Etruscan Origins of Roman Numerals [12/07/2003]

In Roman numerals, what do the letters stand for? Are there words that they come from?

Etymologies of Algebra, Geometry, Trigonometry [10/22/2001]

What are the origins and roots of the words geometry, algebra, and trigonometry?

Etymology of 'Asymptote' [05/13/2002]

Where does the term 'asymptote' come from?

Euclid [8/23/1996]

Who is considered the father of mathematics?

Facts about e [11/09/1998]

Where does the number "e" come from and what uses does it have in the real world?

Fermat's Last Theorem [2/15/1995]

What is the latest with Fermat's Last Theorem?

Fermat's Last Theorem [3/19/1995]

Is is true that the second rule of Fermat has been proved?

Fermat's Last Theorem [6/27/1995]

I read recently in a computer magazine that someone from England has proved Fermat's last theorem. Could you send me more details?

Fermat's Last Theorem [5/26/1996]

Have mathmaticians really proved Fermat's Last Theorem?

Fermat's Theorem [01/21/1998]

Why was Fermat's Theorem such a mystery?

Fibonacci [01/31/1997]

Where can I learn more about Leonard of Pisa?

First Calculation of E [12/18/1997]

How did Euler first calculate the value of e?

Formula for Easter [06/12/1999]

Is there a formula for finding the month and the day on which Easter falls in a given year?

Four-Color Map Problem: Some History [12/10/1997]

Could you please give me the history of this topic?

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