This monument was discovered in the early 20th century and was first explained in 1945. It has long attracted mathematicians, but they are confused about it. Through the description of triangle, researchers recently linked it with a kind of trigonometry. The researchers said in a new report that the ancient mathematical inscriptions "kdspe" and "kdsps" are believed to have originated in 120 BC and were discovered by the Greek astronomer Ippachus about 1000 years ago. Research.
The author of this study writes that this discovery shows that the Babylonians, not the ancient Greeks, were the first to study trigonometry-the mathematics of triangles-and may use it in architectural calculations for building pyramids, temples and palaces. [Seven Most Mysterious Archaeological Discoveries on Earth]
This stone tablet is 5 inches (65,438+02.7 cm) long and 3.5 inches (8.8 cm) wide. It is called Pliem Puton 322, named after its owner, American philanthropist George Arthur Pliem, and Pliem is 1922 archaeologist and antique dealer Edgar Banks.
The movie character Indiana Jones was really inspired by an exploration archaeologist who discovered this clay product in Iraq. Its writing style is similar to other Babylonian stone tablets, so experts can trace it back to BC 1822 to BC 1726, about the time when King Hammurabi ruled the Babylonian Empire.
Experts interpret the four columns of 15 lines written on the stone tablet as a description that 15 triangles form a right angle. The authors of this study wrote that about 70 years ago, as their inclination angle gradually decreased,
The researchers determined that the symbols on the tablet computer represent a special number pattern, called Pythagorean triad, which consists of three positive integers. David Mansfield, co-author of the study and researcher of the Institute, said in a statement:
Mansfield said: "This great mystery, until now, is its purpose-why did ancient scribes perform the complex task of generating and sorting numbers on stone tablets."
It is a new angle trigonometry to analyze the relationship between the sides and angles of a triangle. It is an inherent concept in geometry and also plays an important role in other branches of mathematics. On the basis of previous studies, the authors of this study further pointed out that Pliem Puton 322 was broken and incomplete, and they determined that there were six columns of numbers on the tablet computer at first. According to the research, the relationship between the numbers in the complete table represents a new type of triangulation, which depends on the ratio rather than the angle and circle.
This table contains not only the oldest trigonometric table in the world, but also the only completely accurate trigonometric table, because Mansfield said that the arithmetic and geometric methods of ancient Babylon were very different.
The simplicity and accuracy of the once lost form of Babylonian trigonometry "has obvious advantages over modern trigonometry". Norman Wildberg, a co-author of the study and an associate professor at the School of Mathematics and Statistics of the New University, said that South Wales said in a statement in Sydney.
Archaeologists have discovered a large number of stone tablets made during the Babylonian Empire, but few people have examined them in detail. The findings of this study show that these undiscovered cultural relics from a long-dead empire may have exciting discoveries, which will not only help to understand the history of mathematics, but also help to strengthen the research of mathematics today, Wildberg explained.
"It has opened up," he said. "This has not only brought new possibilities for modern mathematics research, but also brought new possibilities for mathematics education." Mathematicians realize that this ancient and complicated mathematical culture has a lot to teach us.
This discovery was published in the online edition of History of Mathematics today (August 24th).
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