Maths History Quiz

1) The mathematician Pythagoras was born around 569 BC. Where did Pythagoras live? Answer: Samos.

2) Eratosthenes of Cyrene (276 BC-197) was a Greek mathematician who worked on prime numbers and geometry. He made an accurate measurement of the circumference of the earth. Where was Cyrene? Answer: Libya.

3) Which famous mathematician was born in Sicily around 287 BC? Answer: Archimedes.

4) Hypatia of Alexandria was the first woman to make a recorded contribution to mathematics. When was she born? Answer: 370 AD.

5) When did Muslim scientists, mathematicians and astronomers make enormous contributions to the world's knowledge? Answer: before the European Renaissance.

6) Who is said to be the founder of algebra? Answer: Al-Khwarizmi.

7) What do we call the numbers we use today? Answer: Arabic numbers.

8) Leonardo Fibonacci (1170-1250) is known for Fibonacci Numbers. In which city did Leonardo Fibonacci live? Answer: Pisa.

9) Leonardo da Vinci was a Renaissance painter, sculptor, architect, engineer and scientist. Leonardo was also a mathematician and made discoveries in geometry. Where did he do most of his work? Answer: Florence.

10) Nicholas Copernicus, the Polish astronomer and mathematician, attended this university. Answer: Cracow.

11) Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) was a famous mathematician and astronomer. Where was he born? Answer: Pisa.

12) Descartes, the philosopher, scientist and mathematician, is known for his work on analytic geometry. What was his nationality? Answer: French.

13) Pascal, the French mathematician and philosopher, has something named after him. What is it? Answer: a computer language.

14) What was the nationality of the eighteenth century mathematician Leonhard Euler? Answer: Swiss.

15) Albert Einstein was born in Germany but much of his work on the theory of relativity was done in another country. Where did he work? Answer: Switzerland.

WIZ Quiz content from World InfoZone educational website.

We would like to thank the following for the use of the photographs: Mark McLeod, University of Delaware; the Canadian Tourism Commission (Tourism New Brunswick); the South African Tourism Promotion Agency; the Finnish Tourist Board and the Saudi Arabian Embassy (London).