History of Mathematics, an Intuitive Approach

The main goal of this essay is to discuss, informally, an intuitive approach to the history of mathematics as an academic discipline. The initial point of departure includes the analysis of some traditional definitions of the concept of 'history' taken from standard dictionaries. This concise dissection attempts to suggest the complexity of the discipline. The term 'history' is familiar to almost everyone, and most people believe they know its meaning intuitively. The lay person sometimes thinks of history in terms of dates, names, places and of colorful anecdotes on interesting characters. History provides a record of where someone lived and what he did. In short, history is the repository of the past. But what exactly is the history of mathematics as an academic discipline? The events that took place yesterday are now part of history. Photographs are history: they reflect the way we once were. History is studied in elementary school, especially that of student's native countries. Teachers, who often seem old enough to have taken part in some of the historical events, teach-over and over again-anecdotes, names, places, dates, and so on. Historical movies, TV programs and books are popular. The media affects the way people understand history as a discipline. Unfortunately, sometimes the public's knowledge of important historical issues is derived from the popular media (especially movies), and not from professional sources. Thus, their understanding of these events can be distorted. Unlike the word mathematics, the term history is used on a daily basis by the news media. Some reporters may believe that history is actually being made when they type or read the news. On occasions, reporters and anchormen have trouble attempting to disassoci-ate themselves from the event they are reporting on. Of course, in most cases, the term history is misused by professional reporters. Often, for example, TV sports commentators discuss player's individual records while narrating a baseball game. These statistics include the player's batting average, number of times at bat in the game, number of stolen bases, etc. Sometimes, the commentators also narrates the player's background. They mention the college the player attended; where he played in the minor leagues, his previous professional teams and so on. The commentator may also discuss some of the player's qualities as a human being (e.g., generosity, sportsmanship). Then, the sportscaster may try to explain why the player was motivated to become a professional. After the commentator has finished …