Great Discoveries in Mathematics

Great Discoveries in Mathematics is a Baby CTY course where students how the ancient Greeks Romans and other civilizations discovered concepts such as the Pythagorean theorem. This course is only offered at Palo Alto for both sessions. Its course code is HMAT.

Course Description

From the CTY Summer Catalog:

From ancient to modern times, mathematics has been instrumental in the development of science, engineering, and philosophy. In this math course, students consider the questions and problems that have fascinated humans across cultures since the beginning of recorded history.

Students explore mathematical concepts first considered by early cultures, including the Egyptians, Greeks, Mayans, Babylonians, and Chinese. Additionally, they consider this newfound conceptual knowledge in its historical context. Through hands-on explorations, they learn about great mathematical discoveries throughout time, such as Pascal’s Triangle, the Pythagorean Theorem, the Golden Ratio, pi, Zeno’s paradoxes, and the roots of modern mathematics.

By examining the historical development of major mathematical ideas, students leave the course with a greater awareness of a wide range of topics within mathematics, including number theory, algebra, and geometry. They acquire a solid background in mathematical concepts they will encounter in more advanced course work.

Students must have completed grades: 5 or 6