Speaker:  Karine Chemla, Director of Research, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique

The common historiography of mathematical symbolism holds that it is a “European invention.” This view has been disputed based on Arabic, Sanskrit and Chinese sources. These challenges to the mainstream historiography, however, tacitly accept the common understanding of what mathematical symbolism means. In this talk, I question how we commonly conceive of mathematical symbolism, suggesting that this conception was essential to the claim of its “Europeanness.” I further argue that sources from the ancient world help us understand mathematical symbolism better, showing that it has a much longer and more global history than previously thought.

Part of the Science and Technology in Asia series. Sponsored by the Harvard University Asia Center. Co-sponsored by the Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies

Presented via Zoom. Register at: https://scholar.harvard.edu/seow/STinAsia