Intended for students with an interest in mathematics as a discipline/field of study, its history, its people, important developments, different schools of thought, and its contributions to different areas of society.
The course will emphasize a number of themes that have been important throughout the history of the discipline: An example of a possible theme from logic is the role and nature of proof;an example of a possible theme from physics is the role and nature of symmetry; and an example of a possible theme from finance is the role and nature of numerical representation and accounting. For each theme the course will try to at least sketch some of the threads that connect related nascent areas in antiquity through to the theme’s modern representations, while documenting contributions from the seminal thinkers who have made those themes what they are today.
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Varies with the instructor.