OPTEC Christmas Lecture Simon Stevin Mathematician, physicist

OPTEC Christmas Lecture
Simon Stevin
Mathematician, physicist, engineer…,
Uomo universale (1548- 1620)
Oil painting
Library of Leyden
University
(The
Netherlands)
Books on Stevin
Charles V
(Emperor)
John Calvin
(New Religions)
Calvinists became soon
the largest and bestorganized Protestant
group in the Low
Countries
Philip II
King of Spain
Repression
Resistance
Revolt
April 5 1566: petitioners (gueux)
Iconoclastic Fury (July 1566)
William of
Orange
In 1572 he
becomes the
stadholder and
captain-general
of Holland,
Zeeland and
Utrecht (the start
of a government
of the rebel
provinces).
Stevins verwanten (Stevins family)
Hubrecht vander Poort
|
Anthuenis Stevin
x
Cathelijne vander Poort
x
Noël de Carron
|
X Joost Sayon
|
(buitenechtelijk)
(buitenechtelijk)
|
|
Simon Stevin
------------------|------------------(1548)
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x Catharina Craiy
Hubrecht
Emerentiana
|
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Frederik
Hendrick
Susanna
Levina
(1612)
(1613)
(1615)
xJoanna van Leeuwen
---------xPetrus Vlietentoorn
xJohan Roosenboom
(20/06/1642)
|
(29/05/1635)
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Simon
Cornelis
Catharina
Maria Alida Simon Karel Geertruyt Catharina
|
xJoannes Vollenhove
Juliaen
Van Groenewegen
Youth of Stevin
Born in Brugge (1548)
Illegitimate child of
Antheunis Stevin and
Cathelyne vander Poort
Father son of
Burgomaster of Veurne
Mother from a burgher
family from Ieper
(Ypres)
Job in Antwerp as
bookkeeper and
cashier
In 1577 position with
the financial
administration in region
around Brugge
In 1581 registered in
Leiden (The
Netherlands)
Stevin is proud to be
born in Bruges
Title page of one of the
first books of Stevin
“Tables of Interest” with
the indication
“Brugghelinck” originally
from Brugge (Bruges)
Emigration to the North
Why emigration?
Perhaps he disliked the
Spanish oppression in
the South
Or he may have had
Protestant sympathies
In 1583 Stevin’s name
on the role of the
newly-founded
University of Leiden
Young Maurits of
Orange was attending
the courses
A lifelong friendship
developed between the
two men
Maurits, Prince of
Orange,
(present in one of the
books of Stevin)
Periods in Holland
1581- 1590: Period of
pure scientific and
theoretical research
and publication of
books of very high
quality on mathematics,
physics, engineering,
interest tables...
1590 - 1620 :in the
personal service of
Maurits.
A journal and a
corresponding ledger
gives an annual salary
of 600 Dutch guilders
Stevin founded the
school of Engineering
in Leiden (1600)
Visit to Poland in 1591
Plan of
Harbour
works in
the
region of
Danzig
(Gdansk
Poland)
Marriage
In about 1614, at the
age of 66 Stevin
married young
Catharina Cray (2 sons,
2 daughters)
The house of Stevin in
the Raamstraat in Den
Haag ( The Hague)
Medallion
on the
house
in Den
Haag
Possibly earliest
work of Stevin
Contains a description of
commercial practices in
use in the first part of
the 1580s and
discusses the problem
of Company finances.
(The Hague, National
Library of the
Netherlands, Pamphlet
581)
Scientific work
(economics)
The first complete tables of
interest ever published, with
examples to illustrate the
theory of simple and
compound interest. With
this publication Stevin
made the mysterious
business of money more
transparant and accessible
to the ordinary man.
Geometry (only work in Latin)
Geometry
More complicated
developments
De Thiende (Disme)
A page of De Thiende
(addition)
Notation for decimal fractions.
Demonstration of adding three
decimal fractions.
In the appendix, Stevin comes
to the application of his
theory. He shows how to
apply the decimal idea in
for example in weights,
measures and coining.
De Thiende
Features in the famous
Philadelphia list Printing
and the Mind of Man,
which highlights books
that have had an
impact on the evolution
of Western Civilisation
(only 65 books in 16th
century)
Inspired, through the
English translation of
Norton, Thomas
Jefferson’s proposal for
the decimal monetary
unit for the USA.
Napier drew on Stevin’s
work in his inventions of
logarithms.
The only work in French
One of the earliest work
on logic written in the
Dutch language
1585: The year of
physics
The elements of the art
of weighing outlines
the study of statics of
rigid bodies.
Proposition 19
Clootcrans or
wreath of
spheres by
which one
can find the
condition of
equilibrium of
weights on
different
inclined
planes.
That proposition enabled Stevin to
obtain the composition law of 2
concurrent forces by the
parallelogram rule
The pictures of Stevin
an example of a
inclined plane
Illustration of a lever
with arms of unequal
length
1585: the year of
physics
In The elements of
hydrostatics Stevin
succeeded in
calculating the force
exerted by a fluid on
the bottom and walls
of the vessel in which
it is contained.
He formulated the
hydrostatic paradox
many years before
Pascal.
The famous
figure of the
hydrostatic
paradox
From 1590 onwards
Stevin works mainly in the service of Prince
Maurits
Most of Stevin’s publications were on topics
of interest to the nation or to Maurits
He published on politics, fortifications, havenfinding art, marking of army camps,...
Stevin becomes
involved with politics
In Civic Life Stevin
considers the subject
of good and bad
citizenship. It was the
time when the
Republic was set up.
Stevin wrote the
pamphlet inter alia to
promote order and
regularity in the newly
founded Republic.
Stevin as engineer
In The Building of Fortresses
Stevin modified the Italian
system of fortification to
suit the geographical
conditions and available
means of the Low
Countries.
He introduces the old Dutch
method of fortification.
Stevin as geographer
In Haven-finding art Stevin
describes how to determine
a place’s location on earth’s
surface by knowing its
geographical latitude and
the magnetic variation of
the needle of the compass.
It was valuable for the V.O.C.
(the Dutch East Indian
Company)
Stevin superintendent of
the army
In Castrametatio, dit
is legermeting
(the Marking out
of army camps)
Stevin describes
how to set up and
equip a wellorganized military
camp
In Nieuwe Maniere van
Sterctebou door
Spilsluysen (New Manner
of Fortification Using
Spindle-Sluices)
Stevin discribes how to use
special sluices in
defensive works, mainly to
maintain an appropriate
depth of water in moats.
Stevin as a
teacher
Mathematical Memoirs is
a textbook Stevin had
produced for Prince
Maurits in numerous
sciences (algebra,
geography, astronomy,
bookkeeping, statics,
hydrostatics,
perspective,....)
In Van de Verschaeuwing
(On perspective) part of
Mathematical Memoirs
Stevin was the first to
build on the work of
Guidobaldo del Monte.
He devised new and
fundamental theorems
on projections; some of
them are attributed to
Stevin in the works of
celebrated
mathematicians.
In Van de Spiegeling der Singconst (Theory
of the art of Singing) - the manuscript
discovered in 1884 by Bierens de Haan Stevin was the first to propound a correct
theory of the division of the octave into
twelve equal intervals.
Stevin and the Dutch language
Stevin published most of his works in Dutch.
His aim was to bring science and technology
to people outside academic circles.
In his opinion “Nederduyts” was well-suited to
express ideas, because of its short words.
Stevin introduces new words in Dutch to
translate their Latin counterparts.
Typical word “wiskunde” (wisconst).
Stevin as inventor, holder of patents
The diagram shows how fine materials such as clay and sand can be
dredged from harbours and the bottom of watercourses.
Stevin as
constructor of mills
for draining the land
The purpose of the
mechanism is to
transfer the motion of
the sails to the scoop
wheel
Stevin built mills in
series, as this
allowed water to
be raised two,
three or even
four times.
Example in use
today in the
polder “De
Schermeer”.
A spabijhou,
an
equipment
for the
soldiers of
the army of
Prince
Maurits.
Stevin’s most popular
invention is his sailing chariot
(Lithograph Canneel)
Picture of De Gheyn
Statue
of
Stevin
in
Brugge