The Mercur miner. [volume] (Mercur, Utah) 1895-1913, 1905-08-12
| |
|lsll I@I

.
without the aid of paper and pencil,
the answers TO problems which would
puzzle even professor of mathemat tics
using the ordinary methods.
Young Hunters parents are well to
do, and his remarkable faculty will be
developed II possible. 1t may be that
when he reaches manhood's estate he
will lose this gift, as has been the case
with so many cases on records. On
the other hand he may enjoy a sue.
cessful career, as has been the case
with a few of such prodlgies. A
writer recalls the career OF George
Parker Bidder, who was one of the
most remarkable mathematical ge.
muses., and who followed up his pre-.
coclous youth with u successful man.
hood.
Bidder was born in 1906 at Morton
Hampstead, In Devonshlre, England,
where his father carried on small
business as a stonemason. When only
four years old Bidder showed a most
extraordinary ability for calculation.
His peculiar talents soon attra cted gen.
eral attention, and his father found 1t
more profitable TO travel about the
country and exhibit his son as the
calculating phenomenon" than bg fol.
lowing his humble trade. The boy was
taken to London and his peculiar tai
ents were investigated by the most
learned men of his time, whom he as
tOnlshed by the rapidity with which
he answered the most difficult ques-
tons.
The following question was solved by
him in forty seconds: Suppose the
ball at the top of st. Paul's Cathedral
to be six feet In diameter, what did the
gliding cost at 3lad per square inch? ?"
The answer, 1887 los Id, was given be-
fore the examiner had time to put the
figures of the example on paper. The
following question was answered in
sixty seconds: Suppose a city to be
Illuminated with 5000 lamps, each lamp
to consume one pint of oil every four
hours In succession, how many gallons
would they consume In forty years?"
The answer contains nine figures
100, 4S9,OoO gallons. Another curious
question was: Suppose the earth TO
consist OF 071, 100000 inhabitants, and
suppose they die in thirty years four
months, how many have returned to
dust since the time OF Adam, comput-
ing 1t to be $3.50 years?' This problem
offered no difficulties to the lad, who
nonchalantly ratified or the answer in
less than thirty seconds. Fortunately
for the boy, he attracted the attention
OF some eminent scholars, who had him
educated at Camberwell, and afterward
at Edinburgh, where he carried of all
the prizes for the study of higher math-
ematlcs. After his graduation from
college he pursued the profession OF
engineer and became associated with
Robert Stephenson, and assisted in cen
structlng the Birmingham Railway.
Later in life he entered Parliament,
and many stories are told OF Bidders
wonderful skill in detecting a flaw in
some set of elaborate calculations.
He died at Dartmouth in 1878.
Another extraordinary child was
Zerah Colburn. who was born at
Cabot, VT, In 1904. His remarkable
genius for abstruse mathematical prob
lens was displayed at an early age.
and when he was eight years old he
solved the most difficult problems by
the mere operation Of his mind. Asked
by an eminent mathematician TO give
the square Of 10000. he replied almost
instantly, giving the figures, 099,00S,-
0OO,00l, without any hesitation. He OBJ
served that he produced the result by
multiplying the square of 81, 037 by the
square of %, He was then asked to
multiply answer twice by 40, and once
by %, a task which he accomplished
In less than two minutes, although the
answer consisted OF seventeen figures.
In five seconds he gave the cube root
of 4l3,933 ,3iS,677. and to all questions
OF similar nature he succeeded In giving
the correct answers. Professors and
scientific men endeavored to obtain
knowledge of Colburn's methods, but
the boy declared he was unable to ex-
plain how the answers came into his
mind. He was ignorant Of tho com
monest rules Of arithmetic, and could
not even solve problem on paper, not
even simple feat In multiplication or
division. Colburn's faculty Ct com.
putation left him when he reached
manhood, and he died at the early age
OF thlrty.slx.
A singular instance OF this curious
development OF the calculating faculty
and differing In several respects from
Bidder ana Colburn, is the case OF
Jebediah Buxton, who. though he can
not be called an infant prodigy, is one
or the most remarkable of the mental
calculators when names are a part of
the history OF the curious. Buxton was
born in 1907 In Elme:ton. in Derby
shire, where his father was schOolmas-
ter. Notwithstanding his fathers pro-
fession, Jebediah's education was neg
lected. He was not even taught TO
write. II was not until he had arrived
at manhood's estate that he showed
any aptitude for mental arithmetic.
Once interested In the subject, how
ever, his mind developed with amazing
rapldity. He had a remarkable men,
DRY, and while I'm the midst OF a prob
lem he could desist and resume the
operation again where he had left on,