Robert Recorde
The Life and Times of a Tudor Mathematician
Distributed for University of Wales Press
232 pages
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5 1/2 x 8 1/2
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© 2012
Robert Recorde was the first person to write an original book on arithmetic in English, rather than in the then-standard Latin or Greek—and thus the first to write about math in a way that ordinary people could understand. He was, in effect, the first mathematics teacher in the English-speaking world. This biography, which provides a comprehensive overview of Recorde’s life and work, traces the major influences on his study and his writing and charts his contribution to the development of mathematical and scientific thinking in Europe.
J. Johnson, Western Washington University | Choice
“An excellent book. . . . Highly recommended.”
June Barrow-Green, Open University
“Drawing on a wide array of archival and documentary sources, the authors of this collection of highly readable essays shine a bright light on the life and work of the Tudor mathematics educator Robert Recorde. It is a fascinating read for those interested in the Tudor period, the history of science, and the history of mathematics, and it will ensure that Recorde is remembered for much more than just the invention of a mathematical symbol.”
Robin Wilson, president, British Society for the History of Mathematics
“Although best known for inventing the equals sign, Robert Recorde made many other significant contributions to the development of mathematics and science. As this book amply demonstrates, his writings made arithmetic, geometry, algebra, astronomy, and ‘physick’ widely available in English to those for whom the classical texts of the scholar were inaccessible. It can be warmly recommended as a most welcome addition to the historical literature.”
Contents
List of illustrations
Notes on contributors
Acknowledgements
Preface
Editorial conventions
Introduction
1. The lives and works of Robert Recorde
Jack Williams
2. Robert Recorde and his remarkable Arithmetic
John Denniss and Fenny Smith
3. Recorde and The Vrinal of Physick: context, uroscopy and the practice of medicine
Margaret Pelling
4. The Pathway to Knowledge and the English Euclidean tradition
Jacqueline Stedall
5. The Castle of Knowledge: astronomy and the sphere
Stephen Johnston
6. The Whetstone of Witte: content and sources
Ulrich Reich
7. The Welsh context of Robert Recorde
Nia M. W. Powell
8. Commonwealth and Empire: Robert Recorde in Tudor England
Howell A. Lloyd
9. Data, computation and the Tudor knowledge economy
John V. Tucker
Appendix: From Recorde to relativity: a speculation
Gareth Wyn Evans
Bibliography
Index
Notes on contributors
Acknowledgements
Preface
Editorial conventions
Introduction
1. The lives and works of Robert Recorde
Jack Williams
2. Robert Recorde and his remarkable Arithmetic
John Denniss and Fenny Smith
3. Recorde and The Vrinal of Physick: context, uroscopy and the practice of medicine
Margaret Pelling
4. The Pathway to Knowledge and the English Euclidean tradition
Jacqueline Stedall
5. The Castle of Knowledge: astronomy and the sphere
Stephen Johnston
6. The Whetstone of Witte: content and sources
Ulrich Reich
7. The Welsh context of Robert Recorde
Nia M. W. Powell
8. Commonwealth and Empire: Robert Recorde in Tudor England
Howell A. Lloyd
9. Data, computation and the Tudor knowledge economy
John V. Tucker
Appendix: From Recorde to relativity: a speculation
Gareth Wyn Evans
Bibliography
Index
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