Book
Teaching Engineers in Spain in the XVIII century: Analysing Mathematical Courses
| Title: | Teaching Engineers in Spain in the XVIII century: Analysing Mathematical Courses |
|---|---|
| Authors: | Massa Esteve, Maria Rosa, Roca-Rosell, Antoni |
| Contributors: | Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya. Departament de Matemàtiques, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya. SOC-STEM - Impacte Social de les STEM |
| Source: | “Dig Where You Stand” 7. Proceedings of the Seventh International Conference on the History of Mathematics Education. September 19-23, 2022, Mainz, Germany ISBN: 9783959872560 UPCommons. Portal del coneixement obert de la UPC Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC) |
| Publisher Information: | WTM Verlag, 2023. |
| Publication Year: | 2023 |
| Subject Terms: | History of mathematics, Classificació AMS::01 History and biography::01A History of mathematics and mathematicians, Mathematicians-Biography, Àrees temàtiques de la UPC::Matemàtiques i estadística, history of education, 4. Education, mathematical courses, Matemàtica -- Història, XVIII century Spain, Matemàtics--Biografia |
| Description: | The analysis of the treatment of new mathematics in the training of engineers and gunners, taught in private colleges, academies and universities in the XVIII century, merits attention for a better understanding of the evolution of the history of mathematical education in this environment. We consider herein the activity of leading teachers and scholars who, despite being side lined in the common historiography of mathematics, played a major role in disseminating “modern” mathematical theories. In Spain, as in other countries, the origins of “scientific” engineering settle in the Army, where officers acquired their training informally. After the War of Succession (1701-1714), the Spanish Bourbon Monarchy played a leading role in scientific and technologic development by establishing institutions to provide higher education for the officer corps, and in these academies mathematics constituted a core subject. In 1739, a Royal Ordinance established the contents of the course in mathematics to be taught in the academies. This course, prepared by Pedro Lucuce (1692-1779), consisted of eight treatises with a total of approximately 2,200 pages devoted to the main fields of mathematics, including “pure” mathematics (arithmetic and geometry), and “mixed” mathematics (cosmography, statics, hydraulics, architecture, artillery, and fortification). The aim of this paper is therefore to analyse the treatment given to pure mathematics in this original course and to highlight some ideas which it contains. In addition, we make some reflections and provide evidence on the process of transition from workshop technical culture to school culture. We briefly present a notable case of this transition, the private mathematical course prepared by the Minorca artist Pasqual Calbó. |
| Document Type: | Part of book or chapter of book |
| File Description: | application/pdf |
| DOI: | 10.37626/ga9783959872560.0.12 |
| Access URL: | https://hdl.handle.net/2117/399157 |
| Accession Number: | edsair.doi.dedup.....835e3050936939a845b463cd294fa4c3 |
| Database: | OpenAIRE |
| DOI: | 10.37626/ga9783959872560.0.12 |
|---|