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Biography of a Mathematician

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Submitted By Butler03
Words 1276
Pages 6
Catherine Jolley
MTH/110
November 30, 2015
Patricia Ann Vail

Biography of a Mathematician
Born on April 15, 1452 near the Tuscan town of Anchiano came the illegitimate son named Leonardo Da Vinci. Ser Piero, Leonardo’s father, was a notary and Caterina, Leonardo’s mother, was a peasant girl and they never married. When he was five years old, young Leonardo was sent to live at his father’s family estate in the town of Vinci, from which he derives his last name. He was a painter, sculptor, architect, engineer, inventor, draftsman and mathematician. He truly epitomized the term, Renaissance Man. (Heydenreich, 2015). Leonardo did not see a divide between art and science and felt they were two disciplines that were intertwined with equal importance. The sketch of “Vitruvian Man” is a perfect example of that belief. (Editors, 2015).
The term Renaissance is a French word that means “rebirth”. It was the transitional period in Europe between the “14th and 17th centuries when there was a new interest in science and in the ancient art and literature especially in Italy.” (Simple Definition of Renaissance, 2015). The Renaissance came about after one of the many rounds of Black Plague. It is the belief that the huge death toll in Europe brought about the middle class. In order to understand the effect this had on Leonardo Da Vinci is the need to understand what life was like in his time period. Prior to the Renaissance, people lived as peasants on the lands of Kings and other nobility. They worked the lands and had to give servitude and payment to whomever they owed their fidelity to. When the plague decimated Europe’s population there was less and less servants to work the fields and castle, pay the taxes and protect the borders. It was now the nobilities turn to pay the peasants as they could be choosy as to who they worked for. (James, 2011). Now with having money, even the lay people could afford to send their children to schools and apprenticeships. By 1439 the first printing press was in use and the first book to be printed was the bible. It is believed that these individual blocks; payment for services, education and the printing press allowed the rise of the middle class.
Little is known of Leonardo’s childhood. We know that his parents never wed and that by the time he was five his mother had married a local artist and Leonardo went to live at his father ancestral estate in Vinci. He lived with his grandparents, uncle and at some point a stepmother who is said to have loved him very much but died young. It is said that Leonardo was interested in everything and had a very curious mind. Leonardo went to elementary school and received the customary education of that day: reading, writing, and arithmetic. It would not be until much later in his life that he would learn a higher math, such as geometry, and then he would do so with diligent tenacity. But, it was his father when seeing young Leo’s drawing that sent him to apprentice with a successful artist named Verrocchio at the age of fourteen. Here, in Florence, the very inquisitive Leonardo was at the center of not only a thriving intellectual city but also working for one of the great artisans of his time. It is said that when Leonardo was finally picked to collaborate with Verrocchio (which was customary for producing paintings) that his work was far superior to the master of the shop and his fame quickly spread. He stayed with Verrocchio for five more years learning his craft and painting the Adoration of the Magi. (Heydenreich, 2015). Although he was known for being an incredible artist, he was also gaining a reputation for not finishing what he started. It is said that Da Vinci had an intense curiosity but it could quickly cool off and he would be off on a new subject with no regrets. Since he was commissioned to do his paintings it is unknown how he was able to get away with so many unfinished works.
Leonardo moved and lived in Milan, Italy for seventeen years (1482 – 1499) at the royal court of Duke Ludovico Sforza. He would accomplish some of his most famous works that he is known by; The Last Supper, The Virgin of the Rocks and the Immaculate Conception. It is also here that we learn of that Leonardo is held in high esteem as a “technical advisor in the fields of architecture, fortifications, and military matters, and that he served as a hydraulic and mechanical engineer”. (Heydenreich, 2015). There are over 1,000 pages of Leonardo’s sketches of war chariots, armored tanks using men to crank a shaft, dissected humans, botany, geology, physics and hydraulics to name a few.
While in Milan, Leonardo met Luca Pacioli (known as the father of Accounting) who was also employed by the Duke to teach mathematics. Leonardo studied with Pacioli learning mathematics and we see entries in his journals relating to Pacioli’s teachings. In Pacioli book “Divina proportione” we see Leonardo drawings of “geometrical shapes that had mathematical significance in engraved plate form” which was later used in printing presses (Leonardo Da Vinci Mathematician!, 2002). The golden ratio or divine proportion was discussed in Pacioli’s book and would have been of great interest to Leonardo as he believed in the beauty of math and art. It is no wonder that Da Vinci and Pacioli were such good friends during their years together in Milan.
If you say Leonardo Da Vinci’s name to any given person, he/she will either talk of the Mona Lisa, Last Supper or the book, “The Da Vinci Code.” With full disclosure I must state that this is not my first paper on Da Vinci. I did an English paper on him many years ago and have been fascinated with this man since that day. As mentioned previously in this paper, he was the artist, painter, architect, mathematician, inventor and military engineer. He also helped the royal court plan their celebrations so that would make him an “event planner” in today’s world. There seems to be very little he could not do if it caught his attention. If you I were made to choose it would have to be his sketch books that are filled with everything he saw and all the inventions in his imagination.
Leonard Da Vinci traveled to France at the invitation of his friend who was King Francis I. He would live out the remainder of his years doing what he loved the most, filling his notebooks with scientific studies. Loved for his knowledge more than his work by the King he was given the title, First Painter, Architect, and Mechanic to the King. He died on May 2, 1519 in the country house the King provided for him at Cloux France. (Editors, 2015).

References
Editors, B. (2015). Leonardo da Vinci Biography. Retrieved from The Biography.com : http://www.biography.com/people/leonardo-da-vinci-40396
Heydenreich, L. (2015). Leonardo da Vinci . Retrieved from Encyclopaedia Britannica: http://www.britannica.com/biography/Leonardo-da-Vinci
James, T. (2011, February 17). Black Death: The lasting impact. Retrieved from BBC: http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/middle_ages/black_impact_01.shtml
Jayawardene, S. A. (2015). PACIOLI, LUCA. Retrieved from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Luca_Pacioli.aspx#1
Leonardo Da Vinci Mathematician! (2002, June 9). Retrieved from Leonardo Da Vinci Biography.com: http://www.leonardo-da-vinci-biography.com/leonardo-da-vinci-mathematician.html
Simple Definition of Renaissance. (2015). Retrieved from Merriam Webster : http://beta.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/renaissance

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