Diagrams relating to John Wallis's review of Nicolas Mercator's Logarithmotechnia
Date
5 August 1668
Creator
Unknown, Artist
Object type
Archive reference number
Manuscript page number
p5
Material
Dimensions
height (page): 360mm
width (page): 230mm
width (page): 230mm
Subject
Description
The first diagram relates to John Wallis's paper commenting on Nicolas Mercator's Logarithmotechnia in his letter to Henry Oldenburg dated 8 July 1668 (EL/W1/50), read to the Royal Society on 16 July 1668.
The second diagram illustrates Wallis's method of finding the sums of logarithms, from his letter to William Brouncker dated 5 August 1668 (EL/W1/59).
Both were printed as part of John Wallis's review of Nicolas Mercator's Logarithmotechnia in Philosophical Transactions, vol. 3, no. 38 (August 1668).
These were copied in RBC/3/086.
The second diagram illustrates Wallis's method of finding the sums of logarithms, from his letter to William Brouncker dated 5 August 1668 (EL/W1/59).
Both were printed as part of John Wallis's review of Nicolas Mercator's Logarithmotechnia in Philosophical Transactions, vol. 3, no. 38 (August 1668).
These were copied in RBC/3/086.
Object history
At the meeting of the Royal Society on 16 July 1668, ‘Mr. Oldenburg produced a paper in Latin of Dr. Wallis, dated at Oxford July 8, 1668, commending Mr. Nicholas Mercator’s Logarithmo-technia, lately printed, and making the quadrature of the hyperbola universal to all hyperbolas, with a desire, that since by this means the quadrature of the hyperbola was now so complete, as that scarce a better could be expected, and this work perfected by members of the society, this letter might be entered in their Register-Book, the more effectual to declare the invention their’s [sic]. It was read, and ordered to be registered accordingly' (Birch 2:306).
Printed in John Wallis, 'Review (July 1668) of Logarithmotechnia Nicolai Mercatoris, and his own demonstration of infinite series', Phil. Trans. vol. 3, no. 38 (August 1668), pp. 753-64, with woodcut diagrams at p. 756.
Printed in John Wallis, 'Review (July 1668) of Logarithmotechnia Nicolai Mercatoris, and his own demonstration of infinite series', Phil. Trans. vol. 3, no. 38 (August 1668), pp. 753-64, with woodcut diagrams at p. 756.
Related fellows
John Wallis (1650, British) , Mathematician
William Brouncker, 2nd Viscount Brouncker of Lyons (1620 - 1684, British) , Mathematician
Nicolas Mercator (1614 - 2001, British) , Mathematician
William Brouncker, 2nd Viscount Brouncker of Lyons (1620 - 1684, British) , Mathematician
Nicolas Mercator (1614 - 2001, British) , Mathematician
Associated place