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Young World
WORLD OF SCIENCE
Algorithms and Algebra
DR. T.V. PADMA
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The word algebra stems from the Arabic root, al-jabr!
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Photo : Satish.H.
Calculations: Mathematics made easy.
Islamic inheritance laws are very detailed. For instance, if a woman dies, 1/4th of her estate goes to her spouse, and the remaining three-quarters must be divided among her children in such a manner that each son gets twice as much as each daughter does. Does that seem like a complicated problem to you? Obviously, Islamic lawyers had to be excellent mathematicians too.
Inventions
One Arabic mathematician who helped Islamic lawyers with their calculations was al-Khwarizmi, who, among other things, invented algebra (without which the estate lawyers would have had a much harder time). In fact, the word algebra stems from the Arabic root al-jabr, which was part of the title of al-Khwarizmi’s Book of calculations or Hisab al-jabr wal Muqabalah. Algebra is a method in the terms of an equation are moved from one side to another so that the value of an unknown can be determined.
His book also described how to find the square root of a number, and demonstrated the use of equations, the concept of exponents for unknown variables, algebraic multiplication and division and the measurement of area. A Latin translation of this important work exists in Toledo.
Al-Khwarizmi was born in Persia and later appointed the court astronomer at Baghdad by the reigning Caliph. His name gave rise to a modern mathematical and computer science term — “algorithm” — which can be applied to a special method of solving a problem.
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