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Babylonian Mathematics

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Visit this site: http://www.tmeg.com/bab_mat/bab_mat.htm
Author:Dennis J. Ramsey
Description: Unlike the Greeks 1000 years later, 3900 years ago the Babylonians thought in terms of algebra and trigonometry instead of geometry. They used cuneiform symbols on clay tablets and divided the day into 24 hours, each hour into 60 minutes, each minute into 60 seconds. This form of counting (hexasegimal or base 60) has survived for 4000 years. They had tables of squares, square roots, cubes, cube roots, reciprocals, exponential functions, log functions.... The Babylonians reduced equations to the quadratic form and solved some polynomial equations to the eighth degree. The greatest surviving evidence of the application of Babylonian mathematics is the massive construction.
Levels: Elementary, Middle School (6-8), High School (9-12), College
Languages: English
Math Topics: Basic Algebra, Terms/Units of Measure, History and Biography, Trigonometry

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