|
THE
HISTORY OF
MATHEMATICIANS
AND PHYSICISTS
|
by
Carmen
Pareo , Kandi,
Rachmadi Widdiharto
Introduction | The
Task | The Process | The
Resources | Conclusion
INTRODUCTION
Most people may not like the idea of studying mathematics
and physics, because they feel that it is boring and hard to understand.
They do not see how these subjects are related to their lives. Actually,
people do not realize how often they use mathematics and physics everyday
without even thinking about it. One way that these subjects may become
more interesting is learning more about people who have helped to develop
the equations and formulas that are used. When science was first being
studied, the relationship between mathematics and physics was very close.
It was impossible to separate these two subjects. Even today it is
important to support scientific development. Students should understand
the connection between mathematics and physics. In order to understand
these subjects students must know about the people who made contributions
to them.
THE TASK
You are members of a group of researchers who are studying
the history of contributions to BOTH mathematics and physics. Each group
will consist of five students. Each student in the group should research
two different people from this list. After researching the people in the
list go back to your group to discuss your findings. Then, choose
five of them and describe the specific contribution that each person made
to both mathematics and physics. Finally, you will be making a presentation
to your classmates on your findings.
Here is a list of possible Mathematicians and Physicists:
Galileo
Galilei
Albert Einstein
Sofia Kovalevskaya
Johannes
Kepler
Blaise Pascal
Sir Isaac
Newton
Gottfried
Wilhelm von Leibniz
Euclid
Pythagoras
of Samos
John Napier
THE PROCESS
1. Divide the list among your group members so that
each student has two people to research.
2. Search the resources listed.
3. Decide whether or not they made contributions
to both math and physics.
4. Discuss what each group member found.
5. Choose five people that are appropriate.
6. Write about their contributions.
7. Make presentation to the class.
THE
RESOURCES
Online Resources
Offline Resources
A History of Mathematics
by Carl B. Boyer
Journey Through Genius: The
Great Theorems of Mathematics by William Dunham
Math Equals: Biographies of
Women Mathematicians + Related Activities by Teri Perl
CONCLUSION
This task will improve your understanding of the history
of mathematicians and physicists. You will also learn what their
contributions were to the mathematics and physics that we study today.
Maybe you will have a better appreciation for how much more difficult math
and physics were before discoveries were made by these people. Hopefully
this will increase your interest in these topics.
