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In Our Time - Debate
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MISSED A PROGRAMME?
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An opportunity for the audience to have their say. |
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INDIAN MATHEMATICS
John Gerita
Please can we have more explorations of pure mathematics. Not just history of mathematics. The Poincaré programme was fascinating. How about something on some/all of the Millenium Prize Problems
Indian Maths
Surely it was much earlier than the era of the slave trade that the west began to deny/omit the influence of other traditions in maths and science. There was some deliberate destruction of early 'pagan' science by Christians who were either anti science and maths, or wanted to deny the validity of earlier beliefs. They destroyed libraries and manuscripts. This practice survived to the time of the conquests of Peru where whole libraries were destroyed by Spanish monks who found no value in texts from a civilisation they regarded as inferior. But there are many other ways in which traditions can be lost. All written material needs to be preserved, usually through copying. If there is no-one around to do this, or no-one who values it, then it disappears as the texts are lost, to environmental factors, or even scraped off and written over. Knowledge is part of the ebb and flow of civilisations. Culture and science follows conquest. When the civilisation retreats, some of this knowledge is left behind on the uncovered shoreline. Paul Mingard
Bankim Patel -Indian Maths
I was astounded to learn that my forefathers were responsible for most fundamentals of modern maths, the basis of computing, understood the workings of the universe, and even gravity! Surely school history books should reflect this.
Jayesh A Patel Indian Maths
Martin the reason why you cannot decipher contemporary Arab numerals is because the Arab numerals split into two distinct groups "Eastern" and "Western". The numerals used today by Arabs are "Eastern Arabic"; the German (Arabic) numerals came from a variant called "Western Arabic numerals". Another stimulating program, but the erroneous notion of deriving European philosophy and Science directly from Ancient Greece is very misleading for it was the ARABS who brought Greek thought to Europe, in order to still deny this truth, the West term the Arab period of Western civilization as the Dark Ages. Greece was Muslim from 14th century till 1821, and the Acropolis was a Mosque for 300 hundred years during which period it famously lost its roof. Ancient Greece was “created” by the Medieval Church so that it could conveniently by pass the Arabs (Muslims) as the true and direct roots of modern Western civilisation and that includes Indian maths.
Indian Maths’s influence on our maths
Hello! I’m still wondering and I didn’t hear an answer to why our numbers (at least in German) are called "Arabian Numbers" though when I try to read contemporary Arabian numbers I can’t decipher them. Martin Jost Freiburg, Germany
Giles Stanton- Indian Maths
thanks for an extremely stimulating programme, only regret was that you had to finish. Can we have more please!Magic.
a.l.rickards:Indian Mathematics
That was especially good.Mathematics began with a brick in the Indus Valley culture? Is this where the early psychometric question of,"What would you do with a brick,"came from too? Please can we have more early 'Asian' culture topics please.
Jonathan Lowenstein - Indian Mathematics
I think the downgrading of influences external to Europe was a by product of the slave trade and Europe's growing power. Moral justification required belief that Europeans were inherently ("racially") superiour and this led to a growing unwillingness to accept external influences. Growing European power provided "proof" of the superiority of the European mind.
Cheryl Twomey - Indian Maths
Just heard this mornings programme & want to find out more about the Indian mathematician that was mentioned in the programme. I heard the name as Bhaskachari but google doesn't find anything - I've obviously got it spelt wrong - can anyone help me? I understood he was around in the 12th century. Thanks! Really enjoyed the programme (I'm not a mathematician or scientist but it was fascinating. |
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