When1: 1524
When2: 1545
Who: Girolamo Cardano [Cardano, Girolamo] or Gerolamo Cardano [Cardano, Gerolamo]
What: mathematician/physician/inventor
Where: Milan, Italy
works\ Book of Games of Chance [1524]; Practice of Arithmetic and Simple Mensuration [1540]; Great Arts [1545]; universal joint or cardan shaft [1545]; combination lock
Detail: He lived 1501 to 1576 and found general-cubic-equation and general-quartic-equation solutions. He studied negative-number square roots and essentially discovered complex numbers, finding complex-number roots of x + y = 10 and x*y = 40. Cubic equation can be x^3 = p*x + q, where p and q can be zero, positive, or negative. Cubic equation can have up to three roots, all real numbers. If there are three roots {casus irreducibilis}, intermediate steps to solution can require complex numbers. He also studied game probability and began probability theory.
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Mathematical Sciences>Mathematics>History>Algebra
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Date Modified: 2022.0224