I’ve been desperate to apply Calculus to anything else in life, anything at all. After all the point of this blog is to connect the dots, increase our understanding, etc. All week I have been trying to come up with something genius to post on my blog.

Then it hit me. When I started this class, I wanted to know WHO came up with calculus… and why? I’m about to give you all a nice history lesson so sit down, get yourself a nice cup of tea, and enjoy…

Who invented Calculus?

You have our famous friend, Sir Isaac Newton

The man responsible for all things difficult in life

and his pal Gottfried Leibniz

The Man with a lot of hair

to thank for the development of Calculus. But they by no means did it on their own… many mathematicians before them paved the way, including Archimedes, who was the first to tangent a curve.

When?

According to wikipedia, it developed throughout the 17th century after centuries of mathematical exploration that lead to it. Also, Isaac Newton got most of his breakthroughs during the plague.  I guess hard times can bring about some creative yet hard math.

Why?

Newton was getting into physics and geometry, and needed calculus style math to further develop in these two areas of study, especially physics. Leibniz was studying math and the study of the metaphysical. His goal was to create “a general method in which all truths of the reason would be reduced to a kind of calculation.” I’m not sure if calculus does this, but it sounds like a nice idea.

My Take On It

I’m hoping that since Calculus is the math that helps us in Physics, that when I take Physics this summer, I will be better prepared to kick some physics… Arse… since by then I’ll be a calculus genius.

~FIN~