Evolution of Mathematical Concepts: An Elementary Study

Evolution of Mathematical Concepts: An Elementary Study
ISBN-10
0486490610
ISBN-13
9780486490618
Category
Mathematics
Pages
216
Language
English
Published
2013-01-01
Publisher
Courier Corporation
Author
Raymond L. Wilder

Description

Accessible to students and relevant to specialists, this remarkable book by a prominent educator offers a unique perspective on the evolutionary development of mathematics. Rather than conducting a survey of the history or philosophy of mathematics, Raymond L. Wilder envisions mathematics as a broad cultural phenomenon. His treatment examines and illustrates how such concepts as number and length were affected by historic and social events. Starting with a brief consideration of preliminary notions, this study explores the early evolution of numbers, the evolution of geometry, and the conquest of the infinite as embodied by real numbers. A detailed look at the processes of evolution concludes with an examination of the evolutionary aspects of modern mathematics.

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