The University daily. [volume] (Morgantown, W. Va.) 18??-????, 1880-06-11
dartes He was the brill 70 apply aIge-
braic solutions to geometry IN general


N His method vas 81 general ii is char
acter, that hessoon appisd Il to problems
If the greatest difficulty and intricacy.
Soon after appeared tile Two distinguished
fnathenaticiaus range and Iaplace,
who perfected Ills thesFfies and carried
mathematics 10 rs highest perfection ii
regard u generality and symmetry
From this 1t viii Be seen that the sci
ence Of raathenls1ics has been constantly
growing, not 70 much fpy the dispIaee-
ment of false views Is byst the aecretion Of
new substance.
Its not 50 wish the physical sciences !;
many Of them have had their birth within
a few centuries, or even IA few years, and
a large portion sssof whaE was believed a
hundred years ago has been proved to be
false, and many 5pfs the truths of to-day
may yet be set aside as untrue 81 useless,
fpr science has mot reached perfectfon
man has merely embark u upon the great
ocean Of truth and fact This liability to
go astray in pure mathematics IS impossi-
bIe from the very nature Of science, and
tie result IS, that pure mathematics, oW.
Ing to their absolute aid Interchangeable
character, have been tlld first to attract
the attention, and to call forth the reason-
ing and speculative powers Of new ma
tons. II has been the forerpnner Of civ
.ilization in eveR age, apd has laid the
sure and solid foundahsfp for future cul
ture and prospe1ity. II has prepared the
mind to- unfold The truths which nature
Has 50 long kept hidden, and to sdeduce.
from them inekorable.I laws of the uni
verse. III. ssst
The starry armament soon attraetedthe
attention Of the early nations, and cufios,
ity stimulated tfk minds fof,the peopletto
discover something Of their nature, size
and distance. .s5s>
But before making any progress in this
direction, the fchtions qf number, space
and quantityzhad to PEI discovered, and
The laws which governed them made d'3
known. MI III ILL i
For this reason pure Mathematics made
more progress among the Egyptians and
Greeks than anyother Science of antiqui-
", a Ill .s .a
MI The Egyptians associated the overt ow
-of the Nile with the motions of certain
stars and hence astronomy was Of pecul liar,
interest to them, while ,.the Greeks W ere,
probably attracted BY EEthe pure sky and
brilliant consultations 'pf their south ern
home. i III =. : E.@
IE Next let US. consider 1.-The value of math-
ematics as an Indispensable Instrument IN.
tile study Of the physical universe Is 8
Nj Every natural. object is subject to the
conditions Of number, spacesand quantity,
and hence knowledge Of these cohdi-
lions is indispensable tn the sdevelopme nt
Of any sciencel HIt5t- -=s LII -..
HI what progress coulq that noDlest ana
highest Of SCIENCE, astronomy, accom-.
plish were it not for mathematics - :.
Iii its. infancy Iastrohbmical, or rather.
theological theofies- ,Nere laid down and
all discoveries Had to be brought into.
agreement with them; under such con
ditions it was impossible to deduce any Of
the laws which governed the motion Of
the heavenly bodies, bit as soon as these
restrictions were removed, astronomers
began to See then way more clearly.
VI ~Kepler deducA the famous laws which.
still bear his mango, from the known rela-
tons of bodies \, SPADE, and the laws Of
universal attraction, ~
Leverrier discovered forty years ago by
a slight variationin Mercury's orbit, that
there must be al intarmercuriaI planet or
planets and ther discovery only a short.
time ago is only another instance Of the
accuracy Of mathematical science.
Leverrier and Adams, while making
observations on 1.-THE planet Uranus, dis
covered slight Inequalities in its motion;
calculations upor5 this variation led them
to the belief that there existed another
planet exterior B Uranus; they contin-
ued their observations and were enabled
to compute its crbit. time Of revolution
and mass, beforf.it had ever been seen.
Such discoveries as these lead man up
ward into the nolIIIler regions IF thoughts,
expand his i. reai ]bninng powers, cultivate