[math-fun] history of the mathematical story problem
Margaret Cohen of the Stanford French dept is writing a book on literature of the sea and asks: does anyone know a good history of the mathematical story problem? She offers the following example from a sixteenth century navigation manual (I think she said that's where it comes from) * * * * Suppose a Merchant-Ship in 45d 30m North Latitude, falls into the Hands of Pyrates, who take away his Sea-Compass; after which he saileth as directly as he can 67 leagues between the S. and W. and at the end of two days meets a Ship of War, who also had been the Day before in 45d.30m. North Latitude, and had sailed thence S.E. by S. 39 Leagues; now the Merchant-ship left those Pyrates lying to and fro where they robbed him, and the Man of War being desirous to find them: I demand what Course he must shape to speak with them?” (73). * * * * I thought of Archimedes' Problema Bovinum but she's not really satisfied with that, she wants the history of the math story problem as 'dramatic literature' (my term, not hers) I think; ie she wants to know the history of problems that really go to the effort of coming to meet the possibly unmotivated reader with some exciting stuff surrounding the problem. Any thoughts? -- Thane Plambeck http://www.plambeck.org/ehome.htm
I seem to recall reading about math story problems going back to the Babylonians (2k BC?). I don't know if they would qualify as "literature", though. I also seem to recall that there were some early Artificial Intelligence researchers from the 1960's that looked into the possibility of mechanizing the recognition and solving of math story problems. Perhaps one of them may know more history. At 06:07 PM 4/18/2005, Thane Plambeck wrote:
Margaret Cohen of the Stanford French dept is writing a book on literature of the sea and asks: does anyone know a good history of the mathematical story problem?
She offers the following example from a sixteenth century navigation manual (I think she said that's where it comes from) * * * * Suppose a Merchant-Ship in 45d 30m North Latitude, falls into the Hands of Pyrates, who take away his Sea-Compass; after which he saileth as directly as he can 67 leagues between the S. and W. and at the end of two days meets a Ship of War, who also had been the Day before in 45d.30m. North Latitude, and had sailed thence S.E. by S. 39 Leagues; now the Merchant-ship left those Pyrates lying to and fro where they robbed him, and the Man of War being desirous to find them: I demand what Course he must shape to speak with them? (73). * * * * I thought of Archimedes' Problema Bovinum but she's not really satisfied with that, she wants the history of the math story problem as 'dramatic literature' (my term, not hers) I think; ie she wants to know the history of problems that really go to the effort of coming to meet the possibly unmotivated reader with some exciting stuff surrounding the problem.
Any thoughts?
-- Thane Plambeck http://www.plambeck.org/ehome.htm
One possibility might be Susan Gerofsky's , "A Man Left Albuquerque Heading East: Word Problems as Genre in Mathematics Education" published by Peter Lang in 2002 (details at Amazon). Bill Higginson
I seem to recall reading about math story problems going back to the Babylonians (2k BC?). I don't know if they would qualify as "literature", though.
I also seem to recall that there were some early Artificial Intelligence researchers from the 1960's that looked into the possibility of mechanizing the recognition and solving of math story problems. Perhaps one of them may know more history.
At 06:07 PM 4/18/2005, Thane Plambeck wrote:
Margaret Cohen of the Stanford French dept is writing a book on literature of the sea and asks: does anyone know a good history of the mathematical story problem?
She offers the following example from a sixteenth century navigation manual (I think she said that's where it comes from) * * * * Suppose a Merchant-Ship in 45d 30m North Latitude, falls into the Hands of Pyrates, who take away his Sea-Compass; after which he saileth as directly as he can 67 leagues between the S. and W. and at the end of two days meets a Ship of War, who also had been the Day before in 45d.30m. North Latitude, and had sailed thence S.E. by S. 39 Leagues; now the Merchant-ship left those Pyrates lying to and fro where they robbed him, and the Man of War being desirous to find them: I demand what Course he must shape to speak with them?î (73). * * * * I thought of Archimedes' Problema Bovinum but she's not really satisfied with that, she wants the history of the math story problem as 'dramatic literature' (my term, not hers) I think; ie she wants to know the history of problems that really go to the effort of coming to meet the possibly unmotivated reader with some exciting stuff surrounding the problem.
Any thoughts?
-- Thane Plambeck http://www.plambeck.org/ehome.htm
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participants (3)
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Henry Baker -
Thane Plambeck -
William Higginson