Mathematicians Of The Day

5th August



On this day in 1900, the engineer Frank Baldwin was awarded a U.S. Patent for his mechanical calculator. This machine was capable of doing a calculation such as 54679285×3298=18033228193054679285 \times 3298 = 180332281930 in about 20 seconds with eight turns of the handle.
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The postage stamp of one of today's mathematicians at THIS LINK was issued in 1929.

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Quotation of the day

From Niels Abel
The divergent series are the invention of the devil, and it is a shame to base on them any demonstration whatsoever. By using them, one may draw any conclusion he pleases and that is why these series have produced so many fallacies and so many paradoxes ...
Quoted in E Maor, To Infinity and Beyond: a Cultural History of the Infinite