Related papers: K\=aty\=ayana \'Sulvasutra : Some Observations

The M\=anava \'Sulvas\=utra, while less sophisticated than the other \'sulvas\=utras, is seen to contain some mathematical ideas and constructions not found in the other \'sulvas\=utras. Here we discuss some of these constructions and…

Recent analyses of Brahmagupta's discourse on the cyclic quadrilateral, and of Baudh\=ayana's approximate quadrature of the circle, have shown that it is useful to submit mathematical texts to a form of literary analysis. Several passages…

Despite the extensive amount of scholarly work done on Indian mathematics in the last 200 years, the conditions under which it originated and evolved is still not clear. Often, one reads the ancient texts with the present concepts and…

This work explores a possible course of evolution of mathematics in ancient times in India when there was no script, no place-value system, and no zero. Reviewing examples of time-reckoning, large numbers, sacrificial altar-making, and…

While reading ancient texts one has to be cognizant of the assumptions made about the past. One has to ask: Are these assumptions valid? Are we projecting the present views into the past? A case in point is the dating of Vedanga Jyotisa.…

The earliest origins of mathematics in the Indian subcontinent is generally dated around 800-500 BCE when the {\em Sulbasutras} are thought to have been written. In this article we suggest that mathematical thinking in South Asia, in…

The analytical aspects of the "Trait\'e des \'equations" of Sharaf al-D\^in al-T\^us\^i (2nd half of the XIIth century) have been underlined by R. Rashed (1974, 1986). In the present paper, we consider again some of those aspects, when…

This paper is intended to serve two purposes: one, to present an account of the life of Sangamagr\=ama M\=adhava, the founder of the Kerala school of astronomy and mathematics which flourished during the 15th - 18th centuries, based on…

This paper examines how the mathematicians and astronomers of the Kerala school tackled the problem of computing the values of the arcsin function. Four different approaches are discussed all of which are found in Nilakantha Somayaji's…

This survey paper is an expanded version of lectures given at the Clay Mathematics Academy ; see http://www.claymath.org/programs/outreach/academy/colloquium2005.php These lectures were intended to very young (and motivated) college…

This paper aims to give a brief account of the mathematical work of the 7th-century Armenian polymath and natural philosopher Anania Shirakatsi. The three sections of Anania's ``Book of Arithmetic'' -- tables of arithmetic operations, a…

This article is the first in an occasional series for the Australian Mathematical Society Gazette on diverse aspects and topics of Indigenous mathematical knowledge. This is an important, but neglected, part of the mathematical heritage of…

Sanskrit poetry has played a significant role in shaping the literary and cultural landscape of the Indian subcontinent for centuries. However, not much attention has been devoted to uncovering the hidden beauty of Sanskrit poetry in…

We discuss the work of a brilliant line of Mathematicians who lived in central Kerala and starting with its founder Madhava (1350 CE) developed what can best be described as Calculus and applied it to a class of trigonometric functions. We…

This is a revised version of NT0505521, a translation of our Japanese expository article that was published under the title `{\it An overview of sieve methods}' in the second issue of the 52nd volume of Sugaku, the Mathematical Society of…

This article is the first part of a study of the so-called 'mathematical part' of Plato's Theaetetus (147d-148b). The subject of this 'mathematical part' is the irrationality, one of the most important topics in early Greek mathematics. As…

The growing disconnection of the majority of population from mathematics is becoming a phenomenon that is increasingly difficult to ignore. This paper attempts to point to deeper roots of this cultural and social phenomenon. It concentrates…

Sophisticated computation methods were developed 4000 years ago in Mesopotamia in the context of scribal schools. The basics of the computation can be detected in clay tablets written by young students educated in these scribal schools. At…

We investigate the mathematics behind 1500 year old root extraction methods presented by Aryabhata in his famous mathematical treatise "Aryabhatiya". Also, we look at their computational complexity.

We consider the mathematical theory of geographical maps, with an emphasis on the eighteenth century works of Euler, Lagrange and Delisle. This period is characterized by the frequent use of maps that are no more obtained by the…