Alexander, Amir R

Explores how a number of mathematicians have been made into mythical figures, how scientists during the Enlightenment period used geometry to study the earth and space, and more.

"The epic battle over a mathematical concept that shook the old order and shaped the world as we know it. On August 10, 1632, five leaders of the Society of Jesus convened in a somber Roman palazzo to pass judgment on a simple idea: that a continuous line is composed of distinct and limitlessly tiny parts. The doctrine would become the foundation of calculus, but on that fateful day the judges ruled that it was forbidden"--Provided by publisher.