Infinite Powers: The story of calculus
Friday, December 13, 2019, 3:00pm
Warren Weaver Hall, Room 109
Professor Steve Strogatz, the Jacob Gould Schurman Professor of Applied Mathematics and Stephen H. Weiss Presidential Fellow at Cornell University
Everyone has heard of calculus, but why is it so important? In this Holiday Lecture aimed at the general public, I’ll try to clarify the fantastic idea at the heart of calculus. With the help of pictures and stories, I’ll trace where calculus came from and then show how it – in partnership with medicine, philosophy, science, and technology – reshaped the course of civilization and helped make the world modern. This talk is intended for everyone, whether you've taken calculus or not, and whether you like math or not. By the end, I hope to convince you that calculus is one of the most imaginative and consequential triumphs of human creativity ever.