Euclid’s Elements

28 Apr, 2016 510 Mathematics

Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Euclid’s Elements, a mathematical text book attributed to Euclid and in use from its appearance in Alexandria, Egypt around 300 BC until modern times, dealing with geometry and number theory. It has been described as the most influential text book ever written. Einstein had a copy as a child, which he treasured, later saying “If Euclid failed to kindle your youthful enthusiasm, then you were not born to be a scientific thinker.”

→ Play on BBC Sounds website

Guests

  • Marcus du Sautoy 15 episodes
    Professor of Mathematics and Simonyi Professor for the Public Understanding of Science at the University of Oxford
  • Serafina Cuomo 6 episodes
    Reader in Roman History at Birkbeck University of London
  • June Barrow-Green 3 episodes
    Professor of the History of Mathematics at the Open University

Reading list

  • The History of Mathematical Proof in Ancient Traditions
    Karine Chemla (ed.) (Cambridge University Press, 2012) Google Books →
  • Elements
    Euclid (eds. Thomas L. Heath and Dana Densmore) (Green Lion Press, 2002) Google Books →
  • Geometry Civilized: History, Culture, and Technique
    J. L. Heilbron (Oxford University Press, 2000) Google Books →
  • Philosophy of Mathematics and Deductive Structure in Euclid's Elements
    Ian Mueller (MIT Press, 1981) Google Books →

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Programme ID: b07881kn

Episode page: bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07881kn

Auto-category: 510 (Mathematics)

Hello (First sentence from this episode) Hello. Around 300 BC in Alexandria, one of the most important works in mathematics appeared.