Very Early Mathematics (Concise History Chp 1)

● Not much history surrounding creation ancient techniques, mostly just legends
○ From outside looking in, ancient china seems to me like a more “mystical” society than
ancient greece (they denied gods in BC)
● Early Legends -- mostly garbage
○ The Yellow Emperor (2698 - 2598 BC)
■ Tells 5 subjects to observe moon, observe sun, observe stars, fix musical scales,
fix time and seasons, and create arithmetic
● “The Yellow Emperor … ordered Li Shou to create arithmetic”
○ Fu Xi, first of the Three Sovereigns (2852 - 2070 BC), said to be inventor of compass and
gnomon
■ Chronicles of Sima Qian: Emperor Yu of Xia went around with a gnomon and a
compass in his right [hand] while surveying flood damage
○ Mostly created by people of later periods imagining backwards, but we can see:
■ People did have some grasp of numbers and geometric figures in prehistoric
times
○ Maybe very briefly mention the existence of legends purporting creation
● Quipu knots for numbers
○ The Great Appendix to the Book of Changes says: “In prehistoric times men used knots,
later on sages replaced these by writing”
○ Evidence in later ancient works of corresponding numbers of things to numbers of knots
● Numbers were present in oracle bone scripts (1200 BC - 1000BC)
○ Ask questions to their ancestors and write down the answers on animal bones
○ Different numbers produced with different combinations of characters
● Counting Rods
○ Led to a number writing system called rod numerals when written 0 was introduced and
counting rods kind of got phased out
○ What they could do with them, don’t have to get into why or how they could do it
■ Relevant tho because they were still used when Nine Chapters was written and
when Liu Hui did commentary
○ Summary:
■ Counting rods represent digits by the number of rods, and the perpendicular rod
represents five
■ Lines switch from vertical to horizontal to denote places
● Show example between 45 and 405 (what about 400005)
■ Can do the four basic operations visually with this system
■ Represented a decimal (base 10) place-value system long before other societies --
same system the world uses today
● Possibly mention ½ +... + 1/2n → 1

Nine Chapters on the Mathematical Art

● Chapter 2.2 in Concise History -- background and major points
○ NC is a kind of summation representative of the development of chinese mathematics
from 11th century to 2nd century AD
■ Contains many achievements in arithmetic, geometry, and algebra
○ Compiled by several generations from 11th cent. BC → 2nd cent. BC
■ Allows you to see progression of mathematics
■ Much of it was fragmented and augmented until it reached the form that Liu Hui
commented on -- form we have now, at the latest, came into existence by the first
century AD
○ Liu Hui wrote a famous commentary on it (included in reading text) where he provided
solutions and commentary
○ Seems to be much more algebra based possibly because they had a less cumbersome
system of numbers
● Format of the Nine Chapters
○ Comprised of 246 problems in question and answer form
■ Method of induction: Going from specific instances into a generalized
conclusion
■ Gives one or more problems, solves them in some particular method, then
explains method
○ Contains some useful/relevant topics related to the times such as “Field Measurement”
and “Fair Levies” and “Millet and rice”
■ Comprehensive and closely connected with practical life
○ Chapters are relatively structured, moving from introductory ideas to more complex ideas
--- i think read pedagogy sections in NC
○ Has a very systematic and organized way of discussing its methods and results
■ No proofs tho? Much more practical approach compared to what we’ve read --
greeks mostly focused on axioms and principles
● Chinese did have rules and principles
■ Go over very basic fractions example that can be understood on the spot
● Very early with many ideas like:
○ Least common multiple to add fractions with different denominators
■ Overall manipulation of fractions