Homework Page

for

MATH 330

Introduction to the History of Mathematics

The dates follwing the assignment in brackets are the dates by which the assignment is expected to be in your homework notebook.

  • Assignment 1. Do Exercises 23 and 37 in Chapter 1 (pages 37 and 38). In your answer to Exercise 37, be sure to comment on what this problem indicates about possible Egyptian knowledge of the Pythagorean Theorem. [9/3] (Graded in the first collection of HW notebooks; each problem was scored out of 5 possible points.)

  • Assignment 2. Do Exercises 3 and 9 in Chapter 2 (page 90). [9/5]

  • Assignment 3. Do Exercise 15 in Chapter 2 (page 91). [9/10] (Graded in the second collection of HW notebooks; this problem was scored out of 5 possible points.)

  • Assignment 4. Do Exercise 39 in Chapter 1 (page 38). [9/12] (Graded in the first collection of HW notebooks; this problem was scored out of 5 possible points.)

  • Assignment 5. Do Exercise 12 in Chapter 3 (page 123). [9/19]

  • Assignment 6. Do Exercise 9 in Chapter 5 (page 178). [9/24] (Graded in the first collection of HW notebooks; this problem was scored out of 10 possible points.)

  • Assignment 7. Do Exercise 2 in Chapter 6 (page 218). [9/26] (Graded in the second collection of HW notebooks; this problem was scored out of 5 possible points.)

  • Assignment 8. Use the method of Aryabhata to compute the cube root of 205,379 [10/1] (Graded in the second collection of HW notebooks; this problem was scored out of 10 possible points.)

  • Assignment 9. Do Exercises 4 and 15 in Chapter 7 (page 261). Warning: The first two problems on the handout passed out in class have typos -- see your text for the correct problem statements. [10/3]

  • Assignment 10. Exercise 14 in Chapter 7 (page 261). [10/8] (Graded in the second collection of HW notebooks; this problem was scored out of 5 possible points.)

  • Assignment 11. Exercise 18 in Chapter 8 (page 297). [10/10]

  • Assignment 12. Exercise 22 in Chapter 8 (page 298). [10/15]

  • Assignment 13. Construct a quipu with a main cord, and three pendant cords, one of which has a subsidiary cord. Convert the first two letters of your first name to numerals by writing 1 for A, 2 for B, etc. and then concatenating (for example, David becomes 41). Do the same for your last name, and enter your first name number on the pendant cord with the subsidiary cord, and your second name number on that subsidiary cord. Enter your phone number on the the second cord, and the last six digits of your student ID number on the third cord. Attach your quipu to a piece of paper on which you have written the numbers encoded in your quipu. [10/17]

  • Assignment 14. Exercise 13 in Chapter 9 (page 349). [10/22]

  • Assignment 15. Use Cardano's method to solve x^3 + 54x = 721. Show the values for P and Q (what Katz calls u^(1/3) and v^(1/3)). [10/24]

  • Assignment 16. Exercise 8 in Chapter 10 (page 389). [10/29] (Graded in the second collection of HW notebooks; this problem was scored out of 5 possible points.)

  • Assignment 17. Exercise 7 in Chapter 11 (page 422). [10/31]

  • Assignment 18. Exercise 27 in Chapter 11 (page 424). [11/5]

  • Assignment 19. Exercise 2 in Chapter 12 (page 486). [11/7]

  • Assignment 20. Exercise 30 in Chapter 12 (page 489). [11/12]

  • Assignment 21. Exercise 46 in Chapter 12 (page 489. (If you have the calculus book by Stewart, this is problem 90 on page 428 in ¤6.8.) [11/19]

  • Assignment 22. Exercise 43 in Chapter 14 (page 581). [11/21]

  • Assignment 23. Exercise 6 in Chapter 14 (page 578). [11/26]

  • Assignment 24. Exercise 16 in Chapter 16 (page 686). [12/5]

    Assignment 24 is the final homework assignment of the semester.

    Go back to the main 330 page.