History and Culture
History of mathematics and cultural connections
Scientists tempted by astrology
Astrology appealed to scientists when the origin of gravitational forces was still unknown. Since the advent of the scientific method, championed by Galileo and Descartes, and Newton's discoveries, it has been no more than an obscurantist pursuit.
Roots according to Christophe's Savant Cosinus | Tangente
Or how Zéphyrin Brioché performs extractions painlessly...
April Fools' math: humor and science | Tangente
Let's take advantage of April Fools' jokes to revisit, with Stephen Leacock, a few mathematical classics in a lighthearted way…
Pierre Boulez, mathematics and glory | Tangente
"Music is a hidden practice of arithmetic, the mind unaware that it is counting," said Leibniz. Pierre Boulez, who died on 5 January, conductor, composer and teacher of music and musical composition all at once, revealed to the whole world the hidden face of "his" music, in which mathematics runs through like a watermark.
Three brilliant mathematicians would have turned 100
1916 evokes the Battle of Verdun. That same year, Halmos, Shannon and Apéry were born. Though very different, they would share an unconventional personality and an original contribution.
Richard Dedekind: Numbers and concepts
Richard Dedekind died on February 12, 1916. This gives Tangente an opportunity to profile a German mathematician fascinated by numbers, whose legacy continues to shape mathematics today. The concepts he introduced lie at the heart of modern algebra.
Math teacher: a dangerous job for the government | Tangente
A middle school math teacher was arrested at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport while boarding a plane in possession of a ruler, a protractor, a compass, a slide rule and a calculator.
Babylonians calculated Jupiter's course | Tangente
Fourteen centuries before the Europeans, the Babylonians already knew enough geometry to calculate Jupiter's course!
The proportional compass
Two thin, hinged plates for calculating proportions.
The king of geometry: Thales' theorem
In France, Thales' theorem concerns parallel lines and proportionality. Its proof, combining algebra and plane geometry, is remarkably elegant. It also leads naturally to two landmark results in triangle geometry: Menelaus' and Ceva's theorems.
From the Fields Medal to the Abel Prize: researchers in the spotlight
Since the beginning of the 20th century, a host of awards have been established to honor the finest researchers. What do they bring to mathematics? Do they spur research? And how well do our fellow countrymen fare?
Tales of Thales
Thales fascinates! Many historians of science and mathematics have taken an interest in this legendary figure.
Elitism and the recognition of academic achievement | Tangente
A democracy's vitality depends on selecting its elites according to ambitious cultural standards. Yet many politicians seem to deny both the beneficial social role of excellence and its importance to a country's future.
The Simpsons: a website and books — maths in series | Tangente
Countless series have taken an interest in science over the past dozen years or so. Mostly crime dramas, they draw on elements from biology, and sometimes from mathematics, as with Numb3rs.
The subverted geometry of Julien Prévieux | Tangente
The exhibition by Julien Prévieux, winner of the 2014 Marcel Duchamp Prize, "Des corps schématiques", running until 1 February 2016 at the Centre Pompidou (Paris), is not, strictly speaking, mathematical art, but since its theme is the recording of movement, some of the artist's geometric obsessions inevitably appear.
Arithmetic on stage: when numbers invade the stage | Tangente
Reality, by Daria Deflorian and Antonio Tagliarini, was performed this past autumn at the Théâtre de la Colline in Paris (20th arrondissement), and what interests us here is not so much the play's characters as the relationship between its heroine, Janina Turek, and numbers.
Music, serenity, and fractal art: a meeting | Tangente
The artist Alan Stivell, a musician, lyricist, composer and performer well known to defenders of Breton culture, chose a fractal image to illustrate his twenty-fourth album, AMzer (World Village, 2015).
Girls' mathematics competitions: EGMO and more | Tangente
There have always been girls' athletics and skiing competitions, and girls' chess competitions have existed since 1927... So why not consider mathematics competitions for girls? Let's take stock of the existing initiatives.
Thales and his theorem: historical uncertainty explained | Tangente
Who has never heard of Thales's theorem? Yet this extremely famous geometric statement is also one of the theorems whose history is least certain. Let's try to separate history from legend...
Commemorative maths prizes: honoring legacy | Tangente
Prizes help cultivate an appreciation for mathematics and recognize original teaching approaches. A prize has also just been created in tribute to a Chadian mathematician who was politically "eliminated".