HISTORICAL INTRODUCTION TO MATHEMATICAL LITERATURE
CONTENTS CHAPTER 1 ALGEBRA IN MESOPOTAMIA 11 INTRODUCTION 12 LINEAR SYSTEMS 13 QUADRATIC EQUATIONS AND SYSTEMS CHAPTER 2 ALGEBRA IN ANCIENT GREECE 21 INTRODUCTION 22 COMMON ALGEBRA 23 DIOPHANTINE ALGEBRA CHAPTER 3 ALGEBRA IN THE ISLAMIC WORLD 31 INTRODUCTION 32 AL-KHW¯ARIZM¯I 33 AB¯U K¯AMIL 34 THE GEOMETRIC CONSTRUCTION OF SOLUTIONS OF THE QUADRATIC EQUATION 35 THE CUBIC EQUATION CHAPTER 4 ALGEBRA IN MEDIEVAL EUROPE 41 INTRODUCTION 42 THE LIBER MAHAMELETH 43 LEONARDO FIBONACCI 44 LATER DEVELOPMENTS CHAPTER 5 ALGEBRA IN THE RENAISSANCE 51 THE DEVELOPMENT OF ALGEBRAIC SYMBOLISM 52 THE GENERAL SOLUTION OF THE CUBIC AND QUARTIC EQUATIONS 53 THE SOLUTION OF THE CUBIC EQUATION IN ITALY 54 THE SOLUTION OF THE QUARTIC EQUATION IN ITALY 55 BOMBELLI AND IMAGINARY NUMBERS 56 CASUS IRREDUCIBILES