A History of Japanese Mathematics.

Abstract

One of the first books to show Westerners the nature of Japanese mathematics, this survey highlights the leading features in the development of the <I>wasan, </I>the Japanese system of mathematics. Topics include the use of the soroban, or abacus; the application of sangi, or counting rods, to algebra; the discoveries of the 17th-century sage Seki Kowa; the yenri, or circle principle; the work of 18th-century geometer Ajima Chokuyen; and Wada Nei's contributions to the understanding of hypotrochoids. Unabridged republication of the classic 1914 edition. 74 figures. Index.