Lecture series explores the birth of calculus

CMU-Q kicked off a second season of the lecture series, Exploring Math, with a discussion on the beginnings of calculus. Niraj Khare, assistant teaching professor of mathematics, and Mohamed Zayed, associate teaching professor of physics, presented “Birth of Calculus,” a talk that delved into how early applications of calculus solved problems posed by nature.

Khare and Zayed outlined how calculus influences our understanding in wide variety of fields, including architecture, space travel and the motion of objects. While Isaac Newton is often attributed with the first use of calculus, in fact early thinkers like Archimedes and Ibn al-Haytham used calculus to describe natural phenomena.

The second part of “Birth of Calculus” will take place on December 3, and will cover tangents, the work of Leibniz and other fun stories from the era of Newton and Leibniz.

Niraj Khare discusses the birth of calculus

Exploring Math is a lecture series that delves into the beauty, impact and development of classical mathematical concepts. In the last academic year, the series covered the topics of pi and related puzzles and aggregating paradoxes.