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This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone! ... Read more

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This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

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Hailed as one of the greatest mathematical results of the twentieth century, the recent proof of Fermat's Last Theorem by Andrew Wiles brought to public attention the enigmatic problem-solver Pierre de Fermat, who centuries ago stated his famous conjecture in a margin of a book, writing that he did not have enough room to show his "truly marvelous demonstration." Along with formulating this proposition--xn+yn=zn has no rational solution for n > 2--Fermat, an inventor of analytic geometry, also laid the foundations of differential and integral calculus, established, together with Pascal, the conceptual guidelines of the theory of probability, and created modern number theory. In one of the first full-length investigations of Fermat's life and work, Michael Sean Mahoney provides rare insight into the mathematical genius of a hobbyist who never sought to publish his work, yet who ranked with his contemporaries Pascal and Descartes in shaping the course of modern mathematics. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

A fine account of Fermat's work
There is a tremendous mythology surrounding Fermat, and interest in Fermat is high because of Wiles' proof of "Fermat's last theorem."Fermat was undoubtedly a genius, but exactly what he did and didn't do will never be clear, because he wrote so little about his methods and his proofs. Mahoney's book comes as close as I think it's possible to come in figuring out what Fermat's mathematical interests and methods were, what he proved and what he didn't.Only high school math is required to read this book easily; the writing style is clear, and the structure of the book is well organized.

Some readers may be disappointed to learn that Fermat's abilities were only human, and that he made a number of mistakes. But even a genius is entitled to be less than perfect, and the real Fermat is in many ways more interesting than the myth. I recommend this book to anyone curious about Fermat's mathematical abilities and achievements.

Mathematics in transition: Pierre de Fermat
Thanks to the widely publicized proof of Fermat's Last Theorem by Andrew Wiles, there is a growing public interest in the 17th- century mathematician and his famous theorem. However, readers interested in the theorem and its history should look elsewhere as this book is directed towards the history and the transition of mathematics as a science in the 17th century. Studying the evolution of concepts and methods in mathematics, Michael Mahony sets a standard with this excellent work. A student of Thomas Kuhn, Mahony is meticulous in his treatment and interpretation of historical data about Fermat within its historical context. He is very careful in the use of notational systems and at appropriate times he uses the same symbolism as Fermat used in his correspondence with Mersenne and others. These subtleties are important as the evolution in algebraic symbolism has precisely been functional in the foundation of analytic geometry. Further in line with Kuhn's Structure of Scientific Revolutions Mahony first situates Pierre de Fermat within Viète's analytic program and continuously refers to this program of scientific research. He clearly shows where Fermat departs from this program and lays the foundation of something new as with number theory as a discipline on its own.

The career of Pierre de Fermat coincides with an important revolution within mathematics during the 17th century: together with Descartes he fundamentally altered the balance between the visual and the abstract in mathematics. The Greek tradition of visually stating problems about curves, loci and triangles gave way to an abstract characterization in algebraic equations which allowed a more general treatment of these original problems. Where the Greek tradition provided the starting point for Fermat, he moved that far beyond his original sources that by the end of his carreer the original Greek texts became history for mathematicians.

However, the book is even more than an illustration of science in transition: it reveals the mathematician in transition. The author is very convincing in recreating step by step the way Fermat arrived at new ideas and theorems and how, over time, he became the father of new disciplines in mathematics. Mahony does so by reconstructing all the conceptual steps needed in arriving at new ideas. For the method of maxima and minima, the doctrine of tangents and the quadrature, he relies on available historical data, such as Fermat's letters to Mersenne, Descartes and Frenicle. For Fermat's contributions on number theory however, only a few historical documents are available as Fermat was very secretive about his findings and reluctant to publish anything. With some help from Euler and Weil, Mahony shows very convincingly and fits together how theorems and proofs on number theory emerged over time for the man who was Pierre de Fermat.

Everybody who is keen on mathematics and its history should read this book. Being an excellent case study of science in transition, the book will highly appeal to students in the philosophy of science. ... Read more

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High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Pierre de Fermat, né dans la première décennie du XVIIe siècle, à Beaumont-de-Lomagne, près de Montauban, et mort le 12 janvier 1665 à Castres, est un juriste et mathématicien français, surnommé « le prince des amateurs ». Il est en même temps un habile helléniste. Il s'est aussi intéressé aux sciences physiques ; on lui doit notamment le Principe de Fermat en optique. ... Read more

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Der Erwerb des Buches enthält gleichzeitig die kostenlose Mitgliedschaft im Buchklub des Verlags zum Ausprobieren - dort können Sie von über einer Million Bücher ohne weitere Kosten auswählen. Das Buch besteht aus Wikipedia-Artikeln: Pierre de Fermat, Justus Jonas der Ältere, Johann Bayer, Otto Heinrich von Gemmingen-Hornberg, Caesar Rodney, Johann Christoph von Dreyhaupt, Daniel Casper von Lohenstein, Paschen von Cossel, Joseph Martin Kraus, Johann Heinrich Heubel, Girolamo Bargagli, Johann Hieronymus Schröter, Nikolaus von Langenberg, Christian Hoffmann von Hoffmannswaldau, Christian Ulrich Grupen, David Peifer, Andreas Wilms, François Viète, Cristóbal Vaca de Castro, Johann Georg Schlosser, Johann Caspar Goethe, Heinrich Sudermann, Peter Axen, Andreas Corvinus, Theobald Billicanus, Caspar Ziegler, Justus Jonas der Jüngere, Samuel Luther von Geret, Gerhard Westerburg, Michael Beuther, Erasmus Francisci, Johann Philippi, Johannes Jakobus Bouget, Hermann Wetken, Daniel Zöllner, Johann Christoph Marci, Hermann Cothmann, Adolf Friedrich von Olthof, Christoph Preibisius, Henning Brabandt, Valentin Thau, Hubert Languet, Johann Wetken, Kilian Goldstein, Joseph Anton von Mussinan, Johann Jacob Schütz, Gregorius Kugler, Valentin Ostertag, Marcus Tatius, Caspar Michael Welsch, Wiguleus Hund, Étienne Pasquier, Nicolaus Goldmann, Andreas Ramdohr, August Carpzov, Viglius Zuichemus, Ewald von Kleist, Christian Friedrich Weichmann, Johann Domann, Georg von Nißmitz, Louis d'Anglure de Bourlemont, Laurentius Zoch, Johann Pfotel, Johann Camman, Camillo Freiherr von Seebach, Hugo Blotius, Johannes Preibisius, Louis-René de Caradeuc de La Chalotais, Theodor Hagemann, Gregor Heimburg, Johann Heinrich Wilmerding, Jakob Degen, Georg David Jäger, Johann Philipp Odelem, Levinus Hulsius, Nikolaus Georg Reigersberg, Ahasverus Fritsch, Friedrich von Bülow, Albrecht von Eyb, Johann Bartholomäus Reusner, Johann Peter Süßmilch, Eberhard Friedrich von Gemmi...http://booksllc.net/?l=de&id=24964 ... Read more

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This digital document is an article from Macmillan Reference USA Science Library: Mathematics, brought to you by Gale®, a part of Cengage Learning, a world leader in e-research and educational publishing for libraries, schools and businesses.The length of the article is 278 words.The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase.You can view it with any web browser.Explores the functions of math in daily life, as well as its role as a tool for measurement, data analysis, and technological development. This illustrated set also explains basic concepts of math and geometry, and provides information on historical milestones, notable mathematicians, and today's career choices. ... Read more

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This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishings Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the worlds literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone! ... Read more

Product Description
This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone! ... Read more

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High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Pierre de Fermat (French pronunciation: [pjɛːʁ dəfɛʁˈma]; 17 August 1601 or 1607/8 - 12 January 1665) was a French lawyer at the Parlement of Toulouse, France, and an amateur mathematician who is given credit for early developments that led to modern calculus. In particular, he is recognized for his discovery of an original method of finding the greatest and the smallest ordinates of curved lines, which is analogous to that of the then unknown differential calculus, as well as his research into the theory of numbers. He made notable contributions to analytic geometry, probability, and optics. He is best known for Fermat's Last Theorem, which he described in a note at the margin of a copy of Diophantus' Arithmetica. ... Read more

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Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Chapters: Louis Xiii of France, Anne of Austria, Jan Brueghel the Younger, Pierre de Fermat, Ernest I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha, Baltasar Gracián, Margaret Brent, Robert Wallop, Herbert Palmer, Jakov Mikalja, Violante Do Ceo, Arthur Haselrig, John Campanius, Thomas Wiswall, Petar Bogdan, Martin Droeshout, George Sitwell, Peter Chamberlen, Richard Royston, Jean Eudes, William Coddington, Ferdinand Poulton, Diego de Rosales, Alvise Contarini, Frederick William, Duke of Cieszyn, Antoine Daniel, Cheney Culpeper, Spencer Compton, 2nd Earl of Northampton, Cecco Bravo, Jacques Gaffarel, Guido Cagnacci, George Harding, 8th Baron Berkeley, Charles Philip, Duke of Södermanland, John Scudamore, 1st Viscount Scudamore, Shi Kefa, Alonzo Cano, Tagawa Matsu, Edmund Harvey, Nguyễn Phúc Lan, Emmanuel Maignan, Henri, Count of Harcourt, Jacques Goar, Georges de Scudéry, Giuliano Finelli, Philip I, Count of Schaumburg-Lippe, Sir Thomas Rich, 1st Baronet, Mirzā Muḥammad Ali Sāib, William of Nassau, Martín Garatuza, Richard Onslow, John Trapp, Godfrey Henschen, John Oliver, Tokugawa Yoshinao, Hendrick Bloemaert, Obedience Robbins, Maria Dolgorukova, John Gaspar Ferdinand de Marchin, Comte de Granville, Itsunen Shoyu, John Talbot, 10th Earl of Shrewsbury, Martha Carey, Countess of Monmouth, Frans Ykens, Henri, Duke of Verneuil, Anna Maria of Ostfriesland, Jan Reynst, Boudewijn Catz, William Cadogan, Jean Bourdon, Guy Patin, Anne Eleonore of Hesse-Darmstadt, Philippus Brietius, Johann Michael Moscherosch, Florimond de Beaune, Sir Edward Stradling, 2nd Baronet. Source: Wikipedia. Free updates online. Not illustrated. Excerpt: Louis XIII (27 September 1601 14 May 1643) was King of France and Navarre from 1610 to 1643. Along with his First Minister Cardinal Richelieu, Louis "the Just" is remembered for the establishment of...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=77062 ... Read more

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Les achats comprennent une adhésion à l'essai gratuite au club de livres de l'éditeur, dans lequel vous pouvez choisir parmi plus d'un million d'ouvrages, sans frais. Le livre consiste d'articles Wikipedia sur : Pierre de Fermat, Bernard Werber, Claude Sicre, Madame Du Barry, Charles de Rémusat, Claude Nougaro, Guy Novès, Jules Saliège, Arthur Richard Dillon, Ticky Holgado, Charles Antoine de La Roche-Aymon, Philippe Ariès, Famille Alies, Antoine Crozat, Thomas Joannes Stieltjes, Dominique de Guzmán, Jean Dieuzaide, José Cabanis, Michel Cosem, Alexandre Du Mège, Fabien Pelous, Joseph-Marie de Saget, Laurent Wolf, Albert Bedouce, Henry Russell, Jean Doujat, Paul Sabatier, Vincent Moscato, François Maynard, Émile Cartailhac, Étienne-Charles de Loménie de Brienne, James Carlès, Georges de Caunes, Françoise de Veyrinas, René François de Beauvau Du Rivau, Louis-Victor Gesta, Pierre-Paul Riquet, Ernest Nègre, Georges Baccrabère, Guillaume Dubarry, Jean-Étienne Esquirol, Jean de Boyssoné, Nicolas Bachelier, Société Archéologique Du Midi de La France, Antoine Rivalz, José Braga, Gabriel-Marie Garrone, Norbert Casteret, Jacques Cujas, Jean-Pierre Marcassus de Puymaurin, Tibulle Desbarreaux-Bernard, Jean-Louis Des Balbes de Berton de Crillon, Florentin Ducos, Francis Duranthon, Henri Gaussen, Lilian Buzzichelli, Guillaume Isidore de Montbel, Guy Desazars de Montgailhard, Auguste Virebent, François de Fontanges, Famille Lancefoc, Anne-Antoine-Jules de Clermont-Tonnerre, Armand Praviel, Chantal Marty, Jean Castilhon, Charles-François D'anglure de Bourlemont, Gustave de Clausade, Astorg Vii D'aurillac, Gilbert Bokanowski, Guy Lazorthes, Adolphe Bühl, Liste de Personnes Nées à Toulouse, François Verdier, Henri de Nesmond, Joseph Bosc, Louis Deffès, Manu Larrouy, Jacques de Tourreil, Jean-Arnaud Raymond, Jean de Cambolas, Jean-Baptiste Dubarry, Louis-Emmanuel de Boyer-Drudas de Sauveterre, Pierre D'assézat, Lise Enjalbert, Eugène D'hautpoul, T...http://booksllc.net/?l=fr ... Read more

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Kapitel: Galileo Galilei, Isaac Newton, Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, Blaise Pascal, Johannes Kepler, Pierre de Fermat, René Descartes, Christiaan Huygens, Bonaventura Cavalieri, Wilhelm Schickard, Paul Guldin, Athanasius Kircher, John Wilkins, Jakob I. Bernoulli, Johann Bernoulli, Edmond Halley, Michel Rolle, Evangelista Torricelli, Ehrenfried Walther Von Tschirnhaus, Pierre Gassendi, Simon Stevin, Ambrosius Rhode, Erasmus Schmidt, Giovanni Domenico Cassini, Michael Walther Der Jüngere, Samuel Reyher, Erhard Weigel, Johann Adolf Tassius, John Collins, Yoshida Mitsuyoshi, Jean Errard de Bar-Le-Duc, Christoph Notnagel, Marin Mersenne, Tobias Tandler, Philipp Müller, Henry Briggs, Thomas Harriot, John Wallis, Joseph Furttenbach, Elias Von Löwen, Samuel Morland, David Origanus, Eilhard Lubinus, Jacobus Golius, Tobias Beutel, James Gregory, Nicolaus Goldmann, Christoph Pfautz, Abdias Trew, Georg Marggraf, Seki Takakazu, Caspar March, Michael Strauch, Gilles Personne de Roberval, Francesco Maria Grimaldi, John Pell, Andreas Rudolph, Alexander Christiani, Bartholomäus Pitiscus, Matthias Bernegger, Johann Jacob Zimmermann, Joachim Jungius, Willebrord Van Roijen Snell, Józef Naronowicz-Naroński, Johannes Faulhaber, David Herlitz, Georg Friedrich Meyer, Johann Balthasar Lauterbach, Georg Mohr, Magnus Pegel, Balthasar Mentzer Iii, Jakub Kresa, Jacques Ozanam, Alphonse Antonio de Sarasa, William Brouncker, 2. Viscount Brouncker, Friedrich Nitzsch, Isaac Barrow, Frans Van Schooten, David Christiani, Johannes Broscius, Johann Zahn, Johann Van Waveren Hudde, Jean-Baptiste Morin, Daniel Schwenter, Claude Gaspard Bachet de Méziriac, John Greaves, Mōri Shigeyoshi, Erasmus Bartholin, Lucas Brunn, Albert Girard, John Arbuthnot, Michael Florent Van Langren, Valentin Heins, Tobias Tilemann, William Oughtred, Guillaume François Antoine, Marquis de L'hospital, Johann Kühn, Humphry Ditton, Peter Crüger, Giovanni Ceva, Xu Guangqi, Bernard Nieuwentijt, Vi...http://booksllc.net/?l=de ... Read more

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Les achats comprennent une adhésion à l'essai gratuite au club de livres de l'éditeur, dans lequel vous pouvez choisir parmi plus d'un million d'ouvrages, sans frais. Le livre consiste d'articles Wikipedia sur : Niels Bohr, René Descartes, Pierre de Fermat, Leonhard Euler, John William Strutt Rayleigh, Henri Becquerel, Max Planck, Michael Faraday, Léon Foucault, Isaac Newton, Roger Bacon, Antoni Van Leeuwenhoek, Jean-Baptiste Biot, Christian Huygens, François Arago, Thomas Young, Alhazen, Gabriel Lippmann, Francesco Maurolico, Nicéphore Niépce, Chandrashekhara Venkata Râman, Claude Cohen-Tannoudji, Joseph Von Fraunhofer, Aimé Cotton, Charles Fabry, Henri Chrétien, Alain Aspect, Paul Desains, Jules Janssen, Léon Brillouin, Alfred Kastler, Gustav Kirchhoff, Ignace-Gaston Pardies, Armand de Gramont, Pierre Bouguer, Catherine Bréchignac, Giambattista Della Porta, Augustin Fresnel, Aymar de La Baume Pluvinel, Jules Jamin, Roger Cuvillier, Pierre Fleury, Albert Abraham Michelson, Louis Dunoyer de Segonzac, Lucien Dodin, Dimitri Dimitrievitch Maksoutov, Vitellion, Jules Carpentier, Carl Zeiss, Charles Wheatstone, Pierre Angénieux, Jacques Babinet, Étienne Louis Malus, Hippolyte Fizeau, Pierre Jacquinot, Otto Schott, John Dollond, Jean Brossel, Jean Cabannes, Gustav Mie, George Gabriel Stokes, Alfred Perot, Jules Violle, Arnold Migus, Noël Paymal Lerebours, Alexis-Marie de Rochon, Albert Arnulf, Émile Verdet, Jean-Louis Martin, André Maréchal, Georges Nomarski, David Brewster, Maurice Françon, Bernard Cagnac, Jacques Ducuing, Éleuthère Mascart, Jean Becquerel, Christian Imbert, André Masson, Elisabeth Giacobino, Ernst Abbe, Allvar Gullstrand, André Couder, Jesse Ramsden, Caroline Kovarski, Salvino Degli Armati, Georges-Albert Boutry, Bernard Maitenaz, André Ducasse, Daniel Barbaro, John L. Hall, Laurent Cassegrain, Henri Hureau de Senarmont, Maurice Bonnet, Jules Macé de Lepinay, Emmett Leith, Florin Abelès, Charles Chevalier, Yves le ...http://booksllc.net/?l=fr ... Read more

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This digital document is an article from Science and Its Times, brought to you by Gale®, a part of Cengage Learning, a world leader in e-research and educational publishing for libraries, schools and businesses.The length of the article is 2120 words.The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase.You can view it with any web browser.The histories of science, technology, and mathematics merge with the study of humanities and social science in this interdisciplinary reference work. Essays on people, theories, discoveries, and concepts are combined with overviews, bibliographies of primary documents, and chronological elements to offer students a fascinating way to understand the impact of science on the course of human history and how science affects everyday life. Entries represent people and developments throughout the world, from about 2000 B.C. through the end of the twentieth century. ... Read more