PROJECT : HISTORY OF MATHEMATICIANS

ARYABHATA:

Aryabhata (476–550 CE) was the first of the major mathematician-astronomers from the
classical age of Indian mathematics and Indian astronomy
Aryabhata is the author of several treatises on mathematics and astronomy.
His major work, Aryabhatiya, a compendium of mathematics and astronomy, was extensively
referred to in the Indian mathematical literature and has survived to modern times. The mathematical
part of the Aryabhatiya covers arithmetic, algebra, plane trigonometry, and spherical trigonometry. It
also contains continued fractions, quadratic equations, sums-of-power series, and a table of sines.
For his explicit mention of the relativity of motion, he also qualifies as a major early physicist.[7]

Childhood & Early Life

 Aryabhata’s birthplace is uncertain, but it may have been in the area known in
ancient texts as Ashmaka, which may have been Maharashtra or Dhaka or in
Kusumapura in present day Patna.
 Some archaeological evidence suggests that he came from the present day
Kodungallur, the historical capital city of Thiruvanchikkulam of ancient Kerala - this
theory is strengthened by the several commentaries on him having come from
Kerala.
 He went to Kusumapura for advanced studies and lived there for some time. Both
Hindu and Buddhist traditions, as well as Bhāskara I, the 7th Century mathematician,
identify Kusumapura as modern Patna

Education
It is fairly certain that, at some point, he went to Kusumapura for advanced studies and lived there
for some time.[13] Both Hindu and Buddhist tradition, as well as Bhāskara I (CE 629), identify
Kusumapura as Pāṭaliputra, modern Patna.[8] A verse mentions that Aryabhata was the head of an
institution (kulapa) at Kusumapura, and, because the university of Nalanda was in Pataliputra at the
time and had an astronomical observatory, it is speculated that Aryabhata might have been the head
of the Nalanda university as well.[8] Aryabhata is also reputed to have set up an observatory at the
Sun temple in Taregana, Bihar.[14]

Mathematics
Place value system and zero
The place-value system, first seen in the 3rd-century Bakhshali Manuscript, was clearly in place in
his work. While he did not use a symbol for zero, the French mathematician Georges Ifrah argues
that knowledge of zero was implicit in Aryabhata's place-value system as a place holder for the
powers of ten with nullcoefficients.[16]
However, Aryabhata did not use the Brahmi numerals. Continuing the Sanskritic tradition from Vedic
times, he used letters of the alphabet to denote numbers, expressing quantities, such as the table of
sines in a mnemonic form.[17]

Approximation of π
Aryabhata worked on the approximation for pi (π), and may have come to the conclusion that π is
irrational. In the second part of the Aryabhatiyam (gaṇitapāda 10), he writes:
caturadhikaṃ śatamaṣṭaguṇaṃ dvāṣaṣṭistathā sahasrāṇām
ayutadvayaviṣkambhasyāsanno vṛttapariṇāhaḥ.
"Add four to 100, multiply by eight, and then add 62,000. By this rule the circumference of a circle
with a diameter of 20,000 can be approached."
[18]

This implies that the ratio of the circumference to the diameter is ((4 + 100) × 8 + 62000)/20000
= 62832/20000 = 3.1416, which is accurate to five significant figures.[19]
It is speculated that Aryabhata used the word āsanna (approaching), to mean that not only is this an
approximation but that the value is incommensurable (or irrational). If this is correct, it is quite a
sophisticated insight, because the irrationality of pi (π) was proved in Europe only in 1761
by Lambert.[20]
After Aryabhatiya was translated into Arabic (c. 820 CE) this approximation was mentioned in Al-
Khwarizmi's book on algebra.[9]

Trigonometry
In Ganitapada 6, Aryabhata gives the area of a triangle as
tribhujasya phalaśarīraṃ samadalakoṭī bhujārdhasaṃvargaḥ
that translates to: "for a triangle, the result of a perpendicular with the half-side is the area."[21]
Aryabhata discussed the concept of sine in his work by the name of ardha-jya, which literally
means "half-chord". For simplicity, people started calling it jya. When Arabic writers translated
his works from Sanskrit into Arabic, they referred it as jiba. However, in Arabic writings, vowels
are omitted, and it was abbreviated as jb. Later writers substituted it with jaib, meaning "pocket"
or "fold (in a garment)". (In Arabic, jiba is a meaningless word.) Later in the 12th century,
when Gherardo of Cremonatranslated these writings from Arabic into Latin, he replaced the
Arabic jaib with its Latin counterpart, sinus, which means "cove" or "bay"; thence comes the
English word sine.[22]

Indeterminate equations
A problem of great interest to Indian mathematicians since ancient times has been to find integer
solutions to Diophantine equations that have the form ax + by = c. (This problem was also
studied in ancient Chinese mathematics, and its solution is usually referred to as the Chinese
remainder theorem.) This is an example from Bhāskara's commentary on Aryabhatiya:
Find the number which gives 5 as the remainder when divided by 8, 4 as the remainder
when divided by 9, and 1 as the remainder when divided by 7
 That is, find N = 8x+5 = 9y+4 = 7z+1. It turns out that the smallest value for N is 85. In
general, diophantine equations, such as this, can be notoriously difficult. They were
discussed extensively in ancient Vedic text Sulba Sutras, whose more ancient parts might
date to 800 BCE. Aryabhata's method of solving such problems, elaborated by Bhaskara in
621 CE, is called the kuṭṭaka (कककककक) method. Kuṭṭaka means "pulverizing" or "breaking
into small pieces", and the method involves a recursive algorithm for writing the original
factors in smaller numbers. This algorithm became the standard method for solving first-
order diophantine equations in Indian mathematics, and initially the whole subject of algebra
was called kuṭṭaka-gaṇita or simply kuṭṭaka.[23]

Algebra
In Aryabhatiya, Aryabhata provided elegant results for the summation of series of squares
and cubes:[24]

1^2 + 2^2 + \cdots + n^2 = {n(n + 1)(2n + 1) \over 6}

and

{\displaystyle 1^{3}+2^{3}+\cdots +n^{3}=(1+2+\cdots +n)^{2}} 1^3 + 2^3 +

\cdots + n^3 = (1 + 2 + \cdots + n)^2

BRAHMAGUPTA:

Brahmagupta was a highly accomplished ancient Indian astronomer and mathematician who was the
first to give rules to compute with zero. He is best remembered as the author of the theoretical
treatise ‘Brāhmasphuṭasiddhānta’ ("Correctly established doctrine of Brahma"). He composed his
texts in elliptic verse in Sanskrit, as was common practice in Indian mathematics of his time. He was
among the few thinkers of his era who had realized that the earth was not flat as many believed, but a
sphere. He was much ahead of his contemporaries and his mathematical and astronomical
calculations remained among the most accurate available for several centuries. He is believed to have
written many works though only a few survive today. In addition to being an accomplished
astronomer, he was also a much revered mathematician. His ‘Brāhmasphuṭasiddhānta’ is the first
book that mentions zero as a number and also gives rules for using zero with negative and positive
numbers.

Childhood & Early Life

 Brahmagupta was born in 598 AD into an orthodox Shaivite Hindu family. His
father’s name was Jishnugupta. It is generally believed that he was born in Ujjain.
Not much is known about his early life.
 As a young man he studied astronomy extensively. He was well-read in the five
traditional siddhanthas on Indian astronomy, and also studied the work of other
ancient astronomers such as Aryabhata I, Latadeva, Pradyumna, Varahamihira,
Simha, Srisena, Vijayanandin and Vishnuchandra.
  Brahmagupta became an astronomer of the Brahmapaksha school, one of the four
major schools of Indian astronomy during his era.

Mathematics[edit]
Algebra[edit]
Brahmagupta gave the solution of the general linear equation in chapter eighteen
of Brahmasphutasiddhanta,
The difference between rupas, when inverted and divided by the difference of the unknowns, is the
unknown in the equation. The rupas are [subtracted on the side] below that from which the square
and the unknown are to be subtracted.[14]
which is a solution for the equation bx + c = dx + e equivalent to x = e − c/b − d, where rupas refers
to the constants c and e. He further gave two equivalent solutions to the general quadratic equation
18.44. Diminish by the middle [number] the square-root of the rupas multiplied by four times the
square and increased by the square of the middle [number]; divide the remainder by twice the
square. [The result is] the middle [number].
18.45. Whatever is the square-root of the rupas multiplied by the square [and] increased by the
square of half the unknown, diminish that by half the unknown [and] divide [the remainder] by its
square. [The result is] the unknown.[14]
which are, respectively, solutions for the equation ax2 + bx = c equivalent to,

and

He went on to solve systems of simultaneous indeterminate equations stating that the

desired variable must first be isolated, and then the equation must be divided by the desired
variable's coefficient. In particular, he recommended using "the pulverizer" to solve
equations with multiple unknowns.
18.51. Subtract the colors different from the first color. [The remainder] divided by the first
[color's coefficient] is the measure of the first. [Terms] two by two [are] considered [when
reduced to] similar divisors, [and so on] repeatedly. If there are many [colors], the pulverizer
[is to be used].[14]
Like the algebra of Diophantus, the algebra of Brahmagupta was syncopated. Addition was
indicated by placing the numbers side by side, subtraction by placing a dot over the
subtrahend, and division by placing the divisor below the dividend, similar to our notation but
without the bar. Multiplication, evolution, and unknown quantities were represented by
abbreviations of appropriate terms.[15] The extent of Greek influence on this syncopation, if
any, is not known and it is possible that both Greek and Indian syncopation may be derived
from a common Babylonian source.[15]

Arithmetic[edit]
The four fundamental operations (addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division) were
known to many cultures before Brahmagupta. This current system is based on the Hindu
Arabic number system and first appeared in Brahmasphutasiddhanta. Brahmagupta
describes the multiplication as thus “The multiplicand is repeated like a string for cattle, as
often as there are integrant portions in the multiplier and is repeatedly multiplied by them
and the products are added together. It is multiplication. Or the multiplicand is repeated as
many times as there are component parts in the multiplier”. [16][page needed] Indian arithmetic was
known in Medieval Europe as "Modus Indoram" meaning method of the Indians. In
Brahmasphutasiddhanta, multiplication was named Gomutrika. In the beginning of chapter
twelve of his Brahmasphutasiddhanta, entitled Calculation, Brahmagupta details operations
on fractions. The reader is expected to know the basic arithmetic operations as far as taking
the square root, although he explains how to find the cube and cube-root of an integer and
later gives rules facilitating the computation of squares and square roots. He then gives
rules for dealing with five types of combinations of
fractions: a/c + b/c; a/c × b/d; a/1 + b/d; a/c + b/d × a/c = a(d + b)/cd;
and a/c − b/d × a/c = a(d − b)/cd.[17]
Series[edit]

Brahmagupta then goes on to give the sum of the squares and cubes of the first n integers.
12.20. The sum of the squares is that [sum] multiplied by twice the [number of] step[s]
increased by one [and] divided by three. The sum of the cubes is the square of that [sum]
Piles of these with identical balls [can also be computed].[18]
Here Brahmagupta found the result in terms of the sum of the first n integers, rather than in
terms of n as is the modern practice.[19]
He gives the sum of the squares of the first n natural numbers as n(n + 1)(2n + 1)/6 and the
(
sum of the cubes of the first n natural numbers as n(n + 1)/2 ) 2

.
Zero[edit]
Brahmagupta's Brahmasphuṭasiddhanta is the first book that provides rules for arithmetic
manipulations that apply to zero and to negative numbers.[20] The Brahmasphutasiddhanta is
the earliest known text to treat zero as a number in its own right, rather than as simply a
placeholder digit in representing another number as was done by the Babylonians or as a
symbol for a lack of quantity as was done by Ptolemy and the Romans. In chapter eighteen
of his Brahmasphutasiddhanta, Brahmagupta describes operations on negative numbers.
He first describes addition and subtraction,
18.30. [The sum] of two positives is positives, of two negatives negative; of a positive and a
negative [the sum] is their difference; if they are equal it is zero. The sum of a negative and
zero is negative, [that] of a positive and zero positive, [and that] of two zeros zero.
[...]
18.32. A negative minus zero is negative, a positive [minus zero] positive; zero [minus zero]
is zero. When a positive is to be subtracted from a negative or a negative from a positive,
then it is to be added.[14]
He goes on to describe multiplication,
18.33. The product of a negative and a positive is negative, of two negatives positive, and of
positives positive; the product of zero and a negative, of zero and a positive, or of two zeros
is zero.[14]
But his description of division by zero differs from our modern understanding:
18.34. A positive divided by a positive or a negative divided by a negative is positive; a zero
divided by a zero is zero; a positive divided by a negative is negative; a negative divided by
a positive is [also] negative.
18.35. A negative or a positive divided by zero has that [zero] as its divisor, or zero divided
by a negative or a positive [has that negative or positive as its divisor]. The square of a
negative or of a positive is positive; [the square] of zero is zero. That of which [the square] is
the square is [its] square-root.[14]
Here Brahmagupta states that 0/0 = 0 and as for the question of a/0 where a ≠ 0 he did not
commit himself.[21] His rules for arithmetic on negative numbers and zero are quite close to
the modern understanding, except that in modern mathematics division by zero is
left undefined.
Diophantine analysis[edit]
Pythagorean triples[edit]
In chapter twelve of his Brahmasphutasiddhanta, Brahmagupta provides a formula useful for
generating Pythagorean triples:
12.39. The height of a mountain multiplied by a given multiplier is the distance to a city; it is
not erased. When it is divided by the multiplier increased by two it is the leap of one of the
two who make the same journey.[22]
Or, in other words, if d = mx/x + 2, then a traveller who "leaps" vertically upwards a
distance d from the top of a mountain of height m, and then travels in a straight line to a city
at a horizontal distance mx from the base of the mountain, travels the same distance as one
who descends vertically down the mountain and then travels along the horizontal to the
city.[22] Stated geometrically, this says that if a right-angled triangle has a base of
length a = mx and altitude of length b = m + d, then the length, c, of its hypotenuse is given
by c = m(1 + x) − d. And, indeed, elementary algebraic manipulation shows
that a2 + b2 = c2 whenever d has the value stated. Also, if m and x are rational, so
are d, a, b and c. A Pythagorean triple can therefore be obtained from a, b and c by
multiplying each of them by the least common multiple of their denominators.
Pell's equation[edit]
Brahmagupta went on to give a recurrence relation for generating solutions to certain
instances of Diophantine equations of the second degree such as Nx2 + 1 = y2(called Pell's
equation) by using the Euclidean algorithm. The Euclidean algorithm was known to him as
the "pulverizer" since it breaks numbers down into ever smaller pieces.[23]
The nature of squares:
18.64. [Put down] twice the square-root of a given square by a multiplier and increased or
diminished by an arbitrary [number]. The product of the first [pair], multiplied by the
multiplier, with the product of the last [pair], is the last computed.
18.65. The sum of the thunderbolt products is the first. The additive is equal to the product of
the additives. The two square-roots, divided by the additive or the subtractive, are the
additive rupas.[14]
The key to his solution was the identity,[24]

which is a generalisation of an identity that was discovered by Diophantus,

 Using his identity and the fact that if (x1, y1) and (x2, y2) are solutions to the
equations x2 − Ny2 = k1 and x2 − Ny2 = k2, respectively,
then (x1x2 + Ny1y2, x1y2 + x2y1) is a solution to x2 − Ny2 = k1k2, he was able to find
integral solutions to Pell's equation through a series of equations of the
form x2 − Ny2 = ki. Brahmagupta was not able to apply his solution uniformly for all
possible values of N, rather he was only able to show that if x2 − Ny2 = k has an
integer solution for k = ±1, ±2, or ±4, then x2 − Ny2 = 1 has a solution. The solution
of the general Pell's equation would have to wait for Bhaskara II in c. 1150 CE.[24]

Geometry[edit]
Brahmagupta's formula[edit]

Diagram for reference

Main article: Brahmagupta's formula

Brahmagupta's most famous result in geometry is his formula for cyclic

quadrilaterals. Given the lengths of the sides of any cyclic quadrilateral,
Brahmagupta gave an approximate and an exact formula for the figure's area,
12.21. The approximate area is the product of the halves of the sums of the sides
and opposite sides of a triangle and a quadrilateral. The accurate [area] is the
square root from the product of the halves of the sums of the sides diminished by
[each] side of the quadrilateral.[18]
So given the lengths p, q, r and s of a cyclic quadrilateral, the approximate area
is p + r/2 · q + s/2 while, letting t = p + q + r + s/2, the exact area is
√(t − p)(t − q)(t − r)(t − s) .
Although Brahmagupta does not explicitly state that these quadrilaterals are
cyclic, it is apparent from his rules that this is the case.[25] Heron's formula is a
special case of this formula and it can be derived by setting one of the sides
equal to zero.
Triangles[edit]
Brahmagupta dedicated a substantial portion of his work to geometry. One
theorem gives the lengths of the two segments a triangle's base is divided into
by its altitude:
12.22. The base decreased and increased by the difference between the
squares of the sides divided by the base; when divided by two they are the true
segments. The perpendicular [altitude] is the square-root from the square of a
side diminished by the square of its segment.[18]
Thus the lengths of the two segments are 1/2 (b ± c2 − a2/b ).
He further gives a theorem on rational triangles. A triangle with rational
sides a, b, c and rational area is of the form:

for some rational numbers u, v, and w.[26]

Brahmagupta's theorem[edit]
Main article: Brahmagupta theorem

Brahmagupta's theorem states that AF = FD.

Brahmagupta continues,
12.23. The square-root of the sum of the two products of the sides and
opposite sides of a non-unequal quadrilateral is the diagonal. The square of
the diagonal is diminished by the square of half the sum of the base and the
top; the square-root is the perpendicular [altitudes].[18]
So, in a "non-unequal" cyclic quadrilateral (that is, an isosceles trapezoid),
the length of each diagonal is √pr + qs .
He continues to give formulas for the lengths and areas of geometric
figures, such as the circumradius of an isosceles trapezoid and a scalene
quadrilateral, and the lengths of diagonals in a scalene cyclic quadrilateral.
This leads up to Brahmagupta's famous theorem,
12.30-31. Imaging two triangles within [a cyclic quadrilateral] with unequal
sides, the two diagonals are the two bases. Their two segments are
separately the upper and lower segments [formed] at the intersection of the
diagonals. The two [lower segments] of the two diagonals are two sides in a
triangle; the base [of the quadrilateral is the base of the triangle]. Its
perpendicular is the lower portion of the [central] perpendicular; the upper
portion of the [central] perpendicular is half of the sum of the [sides]
perpendiculars diminished by the lower [portion of the central
perpendicular].[18]
Pi[edit]

In verse 40, he gives values of π,

12.40. The diameter and the square of the radius [each] multiplied by 3 are
[respectively] the practical circumference and the area [of a circle]. The
accurate [values] are the square-roots from the squares of those two
multiplied by ten.[18]

So Brahmagupta uses 3 as a "practical" value of π, and as an

"accurate" value of π. The error in this "accurate" value is less than 1%.
Measurements and constructions[edit]
In some of the verses before verse 40, Brahmagupta gives constructions of
various figures with arbitrary sides. He essentially manipulated right
triangles to produce isosceles triangles, scalene triangles, rectangles,
isosceles trapezoids, isosceles trapezoids with three equal sides, and a
scalene cyclic quadrilateral.
After giving the value of pi, he deals with the geometry of plane figures and
solids, such as finding volumes and surface areas (or empty spaces dug
out of solids). He finds the volume of rectangular prisms, pyramids, and the
frustum of a square pyramid. He further finds the average depth of a series
of pits. For the volume of a frustum of a pyramid, he gives the "pragmatic"
value as the depth times the square of the mean of the edges of the top and
bottom faces, and he gives the "superficial" volume as the depth times their
mean area.[27]

Trigonometry[edit]
Sine table[edit]
In Chapter 2 of his Brahmasphutasiddhanta, entitled Planetary True
Longitudes, Brahmagupta presents a sine table:
2.2-5. The sines: The Progenitors, twins; Ursa Major, twins, the Vedas; the
gods, fires, six; flavors, dice, the gods; the moon, five, the sky, the moon;
the moon, arrows, suns [...][28]
Here Brahmagupta uses names of objects to represent the digits of place-
value numerals, as was common with numerical data in Sanskrit treatises.
Progenitors represents the 14 Progenitors ("Manu") in Indian cosmology or
14, "twins" means 2, "Ursa Major" represents the seven stars of Ursa Major
or 7, "Vedas" refers to the 4 Vedas or 4, dice represents the number of
sides of the tradition die or 6, and so on. This information can be translated
into the list of sines, 214, 427, 638, 846, 1051, 1251, 1446, 1635, 1817,
 1991, 2156, 2312, 1459, 2594, 2719, 2832, 2933, 3021, 3096, 3159, 3207,
3242, 3263, and 3270, with the radius being 3270.[29]
Interpolation formula[edit]
Main article: Brahmagupta's interpolation formula

In 665 Brahmagupta devised and used a special case of the Newton–

Stirling interpolation formula of the second-order to interpolate new values
of the sine function from other values already tabulated.[30] The formula
gives an estimate for the value of a function f at a value a + xh of its
argument (with h > 0 and −1 ≤ x ≤ 1) when its value is already known
at a − h, a and a + h.
The formula for the estimate is:

where Δ is the first-order forward-difference operator, i.e.

Varāhamihira

Varahamihira was born in 499 A.D. into a family of Brahmins settled at Kapittha, a village near Ujjain. His
father, Adityadasa was a worshipper of the Sun god and it was he who taught Varahamihira astrology. On a
visit to Kusumapura (Patna) young Varahamihira met the great astronomer and mathematician, Aryabhata.
The meeting inspired him so much the he decided to take up astrology and astronomy as a lifetime pursuit. At
that time, Ujjain was the centre of learning, where many schools of arts, science and culture were flourishing
in the prosperity of the Gupta reign. Varahamihira, therefore, shifted to this city, where scholars from distant
lands were gathering.

Varahamihira was learned in the Vedas, but he was not a blind believer in the supernatural. He was a scientist.
Like Aryabhata before him, he declared that the earth was spherical. In the history of science he was the first
to claim that some “force” might be keeping bodies stuck to the round earth. The force is now called gravity.

The most famous work by Varahamihira is the Pancasiddhantika (The Five

Astronomical Canons) dated 575 AD. This work is important in itself and also in
giving us information about older Indian texts which are now lost. The work is a
treatise on mathematical astronomy and it summarises five earlier astronomical
treatises, namely the Surya, Romaka, Paulisa, Vasistha and Paitamaha siddhantas.

One treatise which Varahamihira summarises was the Romaka-Siddhanta which itself
was based on the epicycle theory of the motions of the Sun and the Moon given by the
Greeks in the 1stcentury AD. The Romaka-Siddhanta was based on the tropical year
of Hipparchus and on the Metonic cycle of 19 years. Other works which
Varahamihira summarises are also based on the Greek epicycle theory of the motions
of the heavenly bodies. He revised the calendar by updating these earlier works to
take into account precession since they were written. The Pancasiddhantika also
contains many examples of the use of a place-value number system.

Contributions[edit]
Trigonometry[edit]
Varahamihira made some important mathematical discoveries. Among these are
certain trigonometric formulae which translated into our present day notation
correspond to

sin x = cos(π/2 - x),

sin2x + cos2x = 1, and

(1 - cos 2x)/2 = sin2x.

Another important contribution to trigonometry was his sine tables where he

improved those of Aryabhata I giving more accurate values. It should be emphasised
that accuracy was very important for these Indian mathematicians since they were
computing sine tables for applications to astronomy and astrology. This motivated
much of the improved accuracy they achieved by developing new interpolation
methods.
Combinatorics[edit]
He was among the first mathematicians to discover a version of what is now known as the Pascal's
triangle. He used it to calculate the binomial coefficients.[21][22][1] He also records the first known 4×4
magic square.

Optics[edit]
Among Varahamihira's contribution to physics is his statement that reflection is caused by the back-
scattering of particles and refraction (the change of direction of a light ray as it moves from one
medium into another) by the ability of the particles to penetrate inner spaces of the material, much
like fluids that move through porous objects.[21]