13 Jan 201318:07
An interesting look at this topic. A bit dismaying to learn that 3000 years later most of humanity was not at this level.
Siobhan
- Current section: Introduction
- Learning outcomes
- 1 Babylonian mathematics
- Acknowledgements
The home of free learning
from The Open University
from The Open University
Alternatively you can skip the navigation by pressing 'Enter'.
Babylonian mathematics
Hide summary
This unit looks at Babylonian mathematics. You will learn how a series...
This unit looks at Babylonian mathematics. You will learn how a series of discoveries have enabled historians to decipher stone tablets and study the various techniques the Babylonians used for problem-solving and teaching. The Babylonian problem-solving skills have been described as remarkable and scribes of the time received a trainng far in advance of anything available in medieval Christian Europe 3000 years later.
After studying this unit you should be able to:
- know something about cuneiform how it was used to represent numbers for mathematical problem solving and computation;
- understand the relationship between a decimal place-value system and a sexagesimal one;
- appreciate the advanced understanding of mathematics in Ancient Mesopotamia in relation to anyone in medieval Christian Europe 3000 years later.
- Duration: 8 hours
- Published on: Friday 8th July 2011
- Level: Intermediate
- Posted under: Mathematics
Babylonian mathematics
Introduction
This unit is from our archive and it is an adapted extract from Topics in the history of mathematics (MA290) which is no longer in presentation. If you wish to study formally at The Open University, you may wish to explore the courses we offer in this curriculum area [Tip: hold Ctrl and click a link to open it in a new tab. (Hide tip)] .
This unit looks at Babylonian mathematics. You will learn how a series of discoveries have enabled historians to decipher stone tablets and study the various techniques the Babylonians used for problem-solving and teaching. The Babylonian problem-solving skills have been described as remarkable and scribes of the time received a training far in advance of anything available in medieval Christian Europe 3000 years later.
Archive content
This is an extract from an Open University course which is no longer available to new students. If you found this interesting you could explore more free Mathematics course units or view the range of currently available OU Mathematics courses.
Other pages You might like
Try: Mathematical models: from sundials to...
Since the dawn of civilisation, humans have used everyday materials to create...
Try: Complex numbers
You may have met complex numbers before, but not had experience in manipulating them....
Study: Postgraduate Diploma in Mathematics
This postgraduate diploma is ideal for mathematicians, mathematically inclined scientists...
Try: Maths as others see it
Visiting a hospital you'd expect to find doctors and nurses, but what about...
Try: Succeed with maths: Parts of the whole
The focus of this unit is exploring fractions, learning how fractions are related to...
Study: The story of maths
This short course traces the development of mathematics – from its origins in Egypt and...
Try: Rotating Bodies and Angular Momentum
How does an ice skater rotate so effortlessly on ice? What are the forces at play? How do...
Try: Numbers
This unit will help you understand more about real numbers and their properties. It will...
Study: Pure mathematics
This Level 2 course - for those with prior mathematical knowledge - introduces the main...
Try: Soaring Achievements
How does an aircraft without an engine stay up in the air? What factors affect a glider's...
Try: John Napier
Scotsman John Napier is best known to for his treatise on Protestant religion. However,...
Try: The Rainbow analysed
For centuries the rainbow has been an object of wonder for scientists and mathematicians....
Copyright & revisions
No significant updates yet
Copyright information
- Creative-Commons: The Open University is proud to release this free course under a Creative Commons licence. However, any third-party materials featured within it are used with permission and are not ours to give away. These materials are not subject to the Creative Commons licence. See terms and conditions. Full details can be found in the Acknowledgements section.
Feeds
If you enjoyed this, why not follow a feed to find out when we have new things like it? Choose an RSS feed from the list below. (Don't know what to do with RSS feeds?)
Remember, you can also make your own, personal feed by combining tags from around OpenLearn.
Alternative Formats
Tags, Ratings and Social Bookmarking
MA290_2
About this site
Views
Votes
Comments
Tags
- climate change (373)
- business (277)
- diaries (194)
- bottom line (169)
- food (168)
- Rough Science (162)
- internet (147)
- BBC Two (145)
- BBC Radio 4 (140)
- BBC (133)
- Scotland (121)
- listings (120)
- points for debate (120)
- children (116)
- Creative Climate (116)
- Bang goes the Theory (116)
- English Civil War (115)
- astronomy (108)
- Thinking Allowed (104)
- religion (98)
- marketing (94)
- 20th century (94)
- Charles I (93)
- evolution (92)
- communication (92)
- research (89)
- sustainability (89)
- architecture (86)
- energy (83)
- Charles Darwin (78)
OpenLearn Links
