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This is a page where we can broaden the context of a discussion and offer motivated students advanced material.
Work needs to be on display!
Do you know about African, Aztec, and Mayan mathetics?
There is evidence to suggest that African Mathematics began
more than 8000 years ago. A carved bone dating from between 9000 BC and 6500 BC was found at Ishango in Zaire. The markings
indicate that these prehistoric people used a base-10 number system (just like we do) and were familiar with prime numbers
and the operation of multiplying by 2. A series of notches on the Ishango bone appear to approximate a lunar calendar, suggesting
a fairly sophisticated knowledge of astronomy.
Long before Columbus and other
Europeans came to the Americas, the ancient Aztecs and Maya developed advanced number systems. They used base-20 for
their systems. The number system most used throughout the world today is a base-10 system. The complex and sophisticated Aztec
and Mayan mathematics are sources of amazement to the present day. The mathematical achievements of the Aztecs and Maya provide
insight into how various cultures have addressed the need to express large numbers as well as insight into the base-10 system
that is so important in our own culture.
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