Ghosts of Mathematicians Past: Paolo Ruffini

Autor/in	Fitzherbert, John
Titel	Ghosts of Mathematicians Past: Paolo Ruffini
Quelle	In: Australian Senior Mathematics Journal, 30 (2016) 2, S.27-37 (11 Seiten) PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	0819-4564
Schlagwörter	Mathematics; Professional Personnel; Mathematics Instruction; Validity; Mathematical Logic; Mathematical Concepts; Secondary School Mathematics; High Schools + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Mathematik; Personalbestand; Mathematics lessons; Mathematikunterricht; Gültigkeit; Mathematical logics; Mathematische Logik; High school; Oberschule
Abstract	Paolo Ruffini (1765-1822) may be something of an unknown in high school mathematics; however his contributions to the world of mathematics are a rich source of inspiration. Ruffini's rule (often known as "synthetic division") is an efficient method of dividing a polynomial by a linear factor, with or without a remainder. The process can be generalised to non-linear divisors. Ruffini's rule can be further generalised to evaluation of derivatives at a given point, does not require technology and, most importantly, it is not beyond the reach of high school mathematics students to prove why the rule works for polynomials of a specific degree. In this article, the author discusses Paolo Ruffini's rule of "synthetic division" and the benefits to teaching it. (ERIC).
Anmerkungen	Australian Association of Mathematics Teachers (AAMT). GPO Box 1729, Adelaide 5001, South Australia. Tel: +61-8-8363-0288; Fax: +61-8-8362-9288; e-mail: office@aamt.edu.au; Web site: http://www.aamt.edu.au
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2021/2/06