Calculus Resource Request

Thread Starter

amilton542

Joined Nov 13, 2010
497
Hi,

Does anyone know what the first published papers were on Calculus?

I'm interested in Newton's work specifically. Insomuch that I don't want a book with a load of problems to work through (I've got plenty of those) but more of an original paper/document on what was going through his mind when working with tangents associated with what didn't work and why it didn't work and so on from the words of Newton himself.

I'd say I'm looking for more of a Diary on the Discovery of Calculus. But, I can't seem to find anything of the sort.
 

Papabravo

Joined Feb 24, 2006
21,159
So you've tried to go through Newton's papers and found them wanting for your purposes. You might try Liebnitz, who developed the integral calculus, but it is likely you'll run into the same problem. These were proud men who were not much interested in giving ANYBODY an insight into the processes of their thinking.
 

WBahn

Joined Mar 31, 2012
29,978
You want to look into Newton's "Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica". My understanding is that a new and full English translation was published in 1999.

My understanding is that Newton's primary drive was to find a better theoretical way of describing planetary motions. His descriptions of what we know call differential calculus were therefore geometric in nature.

Leibnitz, as I understand it, was more interested in what we new call integral calculus and more from a pure mathematical perspective.

While we tend to give Newton most of the credit today (probably due mostly to his relative fame and name recognition), it is mostly Leibnitz's superior notation that we use. Again, at least that's my understanding.
 

Thread Starter

amilton542

Joined Nov 13, 2010
497
So you've tried to go through Newton's papers and found them wanting for your purposes. You might try Liebnitz, who developed the integral calculus, but it is likely you'll run into the same problem. These were proud men who were not much interested in giving ANYBODY an insight into the processes of their thinking.
That's exactly what I've tried to do. But, the reserved stubborn folk they so happened to be has left their flare of influence absent from any true insight the modern man wishes to gain.

The Principia gave me hope, to some degree, in that there must be published papers out there where each of which have been layered with the thought process of our greatest minds. But, I would imagine they apt to take it to the grave.

Any who, where are these Leibnitz papers?
 

Thread Starter

amilton542

Joined Nov 13, 2010
497
You want to look into Newton's "Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica". My understanding is that a new and full English translation was published in 1999.

My understanding is that Newton's primary drive was to find a better theoretical way of describing planetary motions. His descriptions of what we know call differential calculus were therefore geometric in nature.

Leibnitz, as I understand it, was more interested in what we new call integral calculus and more from a pure mathematical perspective.

While we tend to give Newton most of the credit today (probably due mostly to his relative fame and name recognition), it is mostly Leibnitz's superior notation that we use. Again, at least that's my understanding.
From my interpretation on the notation of calculus, I think there was some kind of delay associated with this branch of math.

As we know, Newton derived the Calculus in order to describe motion to a far more superior degree. But, where are all his papers?

The Principia could be regarded as the greatest treatise ever written on motion, yet the true art of his mind-shift tactics appear to be hiding under the rug.

I say, for what reasons?
 

justtrying

Joined Mar 9, 2011
439
Have you looked at the link that I posted - documents from the University Library at Cambridge (as per video)??? His college notebook is quite interesting. Otherwise you have to go to Cambridge.
 

Thread Starter

amilton542

Joined Nov 13, 2010
497
Have you looked at the link that I posted - documents from the University Library at Cambridge (as per video)??? His college notebook is quite interesting. Otherwise you have to go to Cambridge.
Yeah I've looked through those, they're very interesting, but I couldn't find what I was looking for.

Ok not to worry, thanks everybody.
 

studiot

Joined Nov 9, 2007
4,998
A good resource for the English speaker is the Latta translation of Leibnitz

Leibnitz Monadology translated by Latta

Merchant Books, Oxford at the Clarendon Press.
 
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