Thursday, September 03, 2020

One smart fellow …

… Gottfried Leibniz: the last universal genius | OUPblog. (Hat tip, Rus Bowden.)

Leibniz was a monumental mathematician who changed the field of mathematics when he invented the first, early calculating machine. He also created the modern-day mathematical notation for the differential and integral calculus, and invented binary code which he explained in his 1703 essay, “Explanation of the Binary Arithmetic.” This two-point number system is used to write computer programmes and data processors, meaning that Leibniz’s invention was pivotal to how we live now, over 300 years later.

As I recall, one of his key questions was why is there something rather than nothing.

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