Dean of the College and Mathematics Program Present
On the Derivation of the Wallis Formula for Pi in the 17th and 21st Centuries
Friday, February 16, 2018
Hegeman 204A
12:00 pm EST/GMT-5
12:00 pm EST/GMT-5
Tamar Friedmann Smith College
The formula for pi = 3.14159... as an infinite product known as the "Wallis formula” was developed by John Wallis in 1655 by methods that pre-date the establishment of calculus. I will introduce said formula with its original derivation, which includes ideas from arithmetic and geometry as well as techniques which ultimately developed into what is known today as integration. Then I will show how, 360 years later, Carl Hagen and I rediscovered this 17th-century formula in the quantum mechanics of the hydrogen atom.For more information, call 845-758-6822, or e-mail [email protected].
Time: 12:00 pm EST/GMT-5
Location: Hegeman 204A