[Aztlan] Mesoamerican math

[Ivan Van Laningham]

Hi All--
If this is based on his _ From One to Zero: A Universal History of Numbers_,
I can't recommend it.  I had a copy when I was first digging into Mayan
mathematics, and found it to be slick, but it contained too many errors and
inconsistencies to make it worth keeping.  It also did not address anything
outside the mathematics--barely touching on even astronomy.

I eventually found that to learn about Mayan math, it was best to go to the
first sources describing the techniques.  I.e., the best source for figuring
out how the math worked for the G lords was Thompson's original article on
them.

Lounsbury's article in the Dictionary of Scientific Biography is
outstanding, of course, and includes Mayan ways of counting that are
non-obvious. ;-)

Metta,
Ivan

On Fri, Aug 1, 2008 at 2:15 PM, Steve Slavik <sslavik at telus.net> wrote:

> el libro The Universal History of Numbers de Georges Ifrah (Wiley, 2000)
> [traducido de un libro francés, del 1994] tiene un capítulo excelent sobre
> las matemáticas mayas.
>
>
>  I am new to this list and have a serious interest in Mesoamerican cultures
> and how they used numbers and mathematics.  I have done a bit of research on
> the subject, but I am sure there are sources that I am missing.  I have used
> the vigesimal (base 20) and the modified vigesimal (Maya calendar) systems
> and understand how they work.  However, I am looking for information on how
> they used mathematics in their artwork, textiles, construction, planning,
> astronomy, trade, and anything else.
>
>  Please contact me personally at Polis80 at hotmail.com<about:blank>, with
> ideas and suggestions.
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-- 
Ivan Van Laningham
God N Locomotive Works
http://www.pauahtun.org/
http://www.python.org/workshops/1998-11/proceedings/papers/laningham/laningham.html
Army Signal Corps: Cu Chi, Class of '70
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