History of Math (Is for Everyone!) (FYS)
COL 100F
Spring 2026
| Section:
01
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| Crosslisting:
MATH 114F |
Mathematics is often taught as an abstract realm of eternal truths. The aim of this course is to "humanize" mathematical thought by re-embedding it in specific cultural contexts, material practices, and the historical transmission of ideas. We will focus on developments in geometry and algebra (and their interaction) in Ancient Greece, Medieval Islam, and Renaissance Europe, culminating in the analytic geometry of René Descartes. The principal aim of the course, however, is not to equip students with specific mathematical skills that they will go on to exercise in other contexts; it is rather to identify and reflect on the distinctive features of culturally specific mathematical practices and why they take the form they do. This will involve doing a good deal of math, but that mathematical study will be wedded to historical and philosophical inquiries. Historically, we will study the relation of particular mathematical practices to other cultural activities (commerce, taxation, the arts, etc.), their dissemination across space and time (through different places, cultures, and generations), and how their reception in different places and ages has led to transformations in the practices themselves. We will make use of Special Collections to consider different ways mathematics has been performed and preserved in writing, the role of mathematical texts in education, and the material transmission of mathematical knowledge: e.g., how a demonstration makes its way from Syracuse in 250 BC into a textbook printed in the United States over 2000 years later. Philosophically, we will interrogate the notion of mathematical proof by considering different methods of demonstration (reductio, construction, exhaustion, induction, analysis) and identifying the principles of adequacy to which they appeal. We will also reflect on the forms in which mathematical knowledge is presented (axiomatic systems, treatises, problems, theorems, methods) and ask what makes a result significant or generative in a specific tradition or paradigm. No special mathematical background is presupposed, but the class will require significant effort of everyone, regardless of mathematical experience. It is difficult to internalize the intellectual styles of different mathematical paradigms and to appreciate their distinctive methods and results. Some results (such as the Pythagorean theorem) will be familiar, but our approach to them likely will not be. There will be problem sets and tutorial sessions to help us digest the mathematical content. Assignments will include art projects, essays, problem sets, and "explainer" presentations. |
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| Credit: 1 |
Gen Ed Area Dept:
NSM COL |
| Course Format: Seminar | Grading Mode: Student Option |
| Level: UGRD |
Prerequisites: None |
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Fulfills a Requirement for: (Social, Cultural and Critical Theory Certificate) |
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Past Enrollment Probability: 75% - 89% |
| SECTION 01 | | Special Attributes: FYS |
| Instructor(s): Smyth,Daniel Times: ..T.R.. 10:20AM-11:40AM; Location: FRANK108; |
| Total Enrollment Limit: 15 | | SR major: X | JR major: X | | |
| Seats Available: 0 | GRAD: X | SR non-major: X | JR non-major: X | SO: X | FR: 15 |
| Drop/Add Enrollment Requests | | | | | |
| Total Submitted Requests: 0 | 1st Ranked: 0 | 2nd Ranked: 0 | 3rd Ranked: 0 | 4th Ranked: 0 | Unranked: 0 |
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