Famous mathematicians: Blaise Pascal
Task:
Research the life of Pascal and his famous Pascal’s Triangle
You can use books and the internet to find out about Pascal.
A good web site to start from is:
http://www.mathsisgoodforyou.com/people/famousmathematicians.htm
Your research should include:
 his life-story (including where he lived, dates of birth
and death)
 explain Pascal’s Triangle and any other discoveries
 give some detail on his discovery or on the
importance of his work today
Produce a report or a computer presentation to show what you have
found out.
Your audience is your S1 class.
Famous mathematicians: Eratosthenes
Task:
Research the life of and work of Eratosthenes.
You can use books and the internet to find out about
Pascal.
A good web site to start from is:
Eratosthenes: http://www.globalschoolnet.org/GSH/teach/articles/noon.html
Sieve of Eratosthenes:
http://www.cut-the-knot.org/Curriculum/Arithmetic/Eratosthenes.shtml
Your research should include:
 his life-story (including where he lived, dates of
birth and death)
 explain the Sieve of Eratosthenes and any other
discoveries
 give some detail on his discovery or on the
importance of his work today
Produce a report or a computer presentation to show what you have
found out.
Your audience is your S1 class.
Famous mathematicians: Plato platonic solids
Task:
Research the life of Plato and the platonic solids.
You can use books and the internet to find out about
Pascal.
A good web site to start from is:
Plato:
http://www-history.mcs.st-andrews.ac.uk/Biographies/Plato.html
Platonic solids: http://www.mathsisfun.com/platonic_solids.html
Your research should include:
 his life-story (including where he lived, dates of birth
and death)
 explain the platonic solids and any other discoveries
 give some detail on his discovery or on the importance
of his work today
Produce a report or a computer presentation to show what you have
found out.
Your audience is your S1 class.
Famous mathematicians: René Descartes
Task:
Research the life of Descartes.
You can use books and the internet to find out about
Pascal.
Two good web sites to start from are:
Descartes: http://www.philosophypages.com/ph/desc.htm
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/history/inourtime/greatest_philosopher_rene_descartes.shtml
Your research should include:
 his life-story (including where he lived, dates of birth
and death)
 explain his work on Coordinates and any other
discoveries
 give some detail on his discovery or on the
importance of his work today
Produce a report or a computer presentation to show what you have
found out.
Your audience is your S1 class.
Famous mathematicians: Euler
Task:
Research the life of Euler and Euler’s work – his formula for
solid shapes and the Konigsberg Bridge problem
You can use books and the internet to find out about Euler.
A good web site to start from is:
Euler:
http://www-history.mcs.st-andrews.ac.uk/Biographies/Euler.html
Euler’s Formula: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euler_characteristic
Your research should include:
 his life-story (including where he lived, dates of
birth and death)
 explain Euler’s Formula and any other discoveries
 give some detail on his discovery or on the
importance of his work today
Produce a report or a computer presentation to show what you have
found out.
Your audience is your S1 class.
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Famous mathematicians: Fibonacci
Task:
Research the life of Fibonacci and Fibonacci sequences
You can use books and the internet to find out about Fibonacci.
Good web sites to start from are:
http://www.mathsisgoodforyou.com/people/famousmathematicians.htm
http://www.vashti.net/mceinc/unfold0.htm
Your
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research should include:
his life-story (including where he lived, dates of birth and death)
explain Fibonacci’s sequence and any other discoveries
give some detail on his discovery or on the importance of his work
today
Produce a report or a computer presentation to show what you have
found out.
Your audience is your S1 class.
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Famous mathematicians: John Napier
Task:
Research the life of Napier and Napier's Bones.
You can use books and the internet to find out about Napier.
Good websites to start from are:
Archimedes: http://www.maxmon.com/1600ad.htm
napier.htm
and
http://gwydir.demon.co.uk/jo/numbers/machine/
http://nrich.maths.org/public/viewer.php?obj_id=1132
Your research should include:
 his life-story (including where he lived, dates
of birth and death)
 explain Napier’s Bones and any other
discoveries
 give some detail on his discovery or on the
importance of his work today
Produce a report or a computer presentation to show what you have
found out.
Your audience is your S1 class.
Famous Mathematicians: Sophie Germain
Task:
Research the life and work of Sophie Germain in prime
numbers and acoustics.
You can use books and the internet to find out about
Germain.
Good websites to start from are;
http://www.gap-system.org/~history/Indexes/G.html
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/physics/sophie-germain.html
Your research should include:
 her life-story (including where she lived, dates of birth and death)
 a description of a Germain prime number and any other of her
discoveries
 give some detail on her discovery or on the importance of her work
today
Produce a report or a computer presentation to show what you have
found out.
Your audience is your S1 class.