Reading Mathematics in Early Modern Europeкнига
Аннотация: Within a small manuscript collection of notes on Euclidian geometry, the Oxford antiquary and fellow of Corpus Christi College, Brian Twyne (1581-1644) recorded a bit of gossip.To compile his notes, Twyne was using several texts but mainly working from the famous first English edition of Euclid of 1570, by the Lord Mayor of London, Sir Henry Billingsley.There were rumours that Billingsley had cribbed his mathematical learning from others.Twyne had heard that a certain 'Frier Whitehead' had fled Oxford during Henry VIII's demolition of the monasteries.He found refuge with the Alderman Billingsley in London, and he set about teaching Billingsley geometry.In fact, he left Billingsley all his notes on Euclid's Elements, 'which the said Billingsley after Whiteheds death, havinge well digested, and ordered them, published them in his owne name.' 1 Beyond his printed and manuscript sources, moreover, Twyne's mathematical reading was leavened by conversation: he reported that the story about Friar Whitehead 'hath beene told unto me many a time by Mr Allen of Glosterhall, who had was so enformed by old Dr Barnes, livinge at that time, to whom these parties were well knowne, and the matter also.' 2 Thomas Allen had rooms at Gloucester Hall from 1571 until his death in 1632, and shared with Twyne many of his intellectual interests, including Twyne's life-long commitment to understanding the longer history of Oxford.We know much about Allen's collection from one of Twyne's many notebooks, later incorporated into Anthony Wood's own collection: in 1622, Twyne listed Allen's hundreds of carefully curated manuscripts, with a strong weight on natural philosophy and mathematics, as well as broader interests in English history. 3 In fact, it would appear that Allen can be blamed for Twyne's own interests in mathematics, as his tutor. 4 The story supplies context for Twyne's own reading of mathematics.In a meaningful sense, Twyne was an amateur, a lover of mathematical arts, more than a practitioner.
Год издания: 2020
Ключевые слова: History and Theory of Mathematics, Historical and Literary Studies, Historical Philosophy and Science
Другие ссылки: doi.org (HTML)
Edinburgh Research Explorer (University of Edinburgh) (PDF)
Edinburgh Research Explorer (University of Edinburgh) (HTML)
Edinburgh Research Explorer (University of Edinburgh) (HTML)
Edinburgh Research Explorer (University of Edinburgh) (PDF)
Edinburgh Research Explorer (University of Edinburgh) (HTML)
Edinburgh Research Explorer (University of Edinburgh) (HTML)
Открытый доступ: green