Gerolamo Cardano

Italian Renaissance polymath

Born: September 24, 1501 · Died: September 21, 1576

Famous Persons

Gerolamo Cardano — Image via Wikimedia Commons or Wikipedia.

Overview

Legacy

He made significant contributions to hypocycloids - published in De proportionibus, in 1570.

Who was Gerolamo Cardano?

Gerolamo Cardano (Italian: [dʒeˈrɔːlamo karˈdaːno]; also Girolamo or Geronimo; French: Jérôme Cardan; Latin: Hieronymus Cardanus; 24 September 1501– 21 September 1576) was an Italian polymath whose interests and proficiencies ranged through those of mathematician, physician, biologist, physicist, chemist, astrologer, astronomer, philosopher, music theorist, writer, and gambler. He wrote more than 200 works on science. Cardano partially invented and described several mechanical devices including the combination lock, the gimbal consisting of three concentric rings allowing a supported compass or gyroscope to rotate freely, and the Cardan shaft with universal joints, which allows the transmission of rotary motion at various angles and is used in vehicles to this day.

Historical significance

He became one of the most influential mathematicians of the Renaissance and one of the key figures in the foundation of probability; he introduced the binomial coefficients and the binomial theorem in the Western world.

Portrait of Cardano on display at the School of Mathematics and Statistics, University of St Andrews

Sources and further reading

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Wikipedia source

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