Lesson plan

Ars Conjectandi

(Latin for "The Art of Conjecturing") is a book on combinatorics and mathematical probability written by Jacob Bernoulli and published in 1713, eight years after his death, by his nephew, Nicolaus I Bernoulli. The seminal work consolidated, apart from many combinatorial topics, many central ideas in probability theory, such as the very first version of the law of large numbers: indeed, it is widely regarded as the founding work of that subject. It also addressed problems that today are classified in the twelvefold way and added to the subjects; consequently, it has been dubbed an important historical landmark in not only probability but all combinatorics by a plethora of mathematical historians. The importance of this early work had a large impact on both contemporary and later mathematicians; for example, Abraham de Moivre. Bernoulli wrote the text between 1684 and 1689, including the work of mathematicians such as Christiaan Huygens, Gerolamo Cardano, Pierre de Fermat, and Blaise Pascal. He incorporated fundamental combinatorial topics such as his theory of permutations and combinations (the aforementioned problems from the twelvefold way) as well as those more distantly connected to the burgeoning subject: the derivation and properties of the eponymous Bernoulli numbers, for instance.…

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Article summary

(Latin for "The Art of Conjecturing") is a book on combinatorics and mathematical probability written by Jacob Bernoulli and published in 1713, eight years after his death, by his nephew, Nicolaus I Bernoulli. The seminal work consolidated, apart from many combinatorial topics, many central ideas in probability theory, such as the very first version of the law of large numbers: indeed, it is widely regarded as the founding work of that subject. It also addressed problems that today are classified in the twelvefold way and added to the subjects; consequently, it has been dubbed an important historical landmark in not only probability but all combinatorics by a plethora of mathematical historians. The importance of this early work had a large impact on both contemporary and later mathematicians; for example, Abraham de Moivre. Bernoulli wrote the text between 1684 and 1689, including the work of mathematicians such as Christiaan Huygens, Gerolamo Cardano, Pierre de Fermat, and Blaise Pascal. He incorporated fundamental combinatorial topics such as his theory of permutations and combinations (the aforementioned problems from the twelvefold way) as well as those more distantly connected to the burgeoning subject: the derivation and properties of the eponymous Bernoulli numbers, for instance.…

Key claims

  1. publication date: 1713 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
  2. publication date: 1663 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
  3. publication date: 1662 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
  4. publication date: 1671 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
  5. publication date: 1690 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
  6. publication date: 1713 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
  7. publication date: 1686 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
  8. publication date: 1709 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95

Discussion questions

  1. Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
  2. The record states that the publication date is "1713". What evidence would count against this claim?
  3. The record states that the publication date is "1663". What evidence would count against this claim?
  4. The record states that the publication date is "1662". What evidence would count against this claim?
  5. The record states that the publication date is "1671". What evidence would count against this claim?
  6. The record states that the publication date is "1690". What evidence would count against this claim?
  7. The record states that the publication date is "1713". What evidence would count against this claim?
  8. The record states that the publication date is "1686". What evidence would count against this claim?
  9. The record states that the publication date is "1709". What evidence would count against this claim?
  10. Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
  11. If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?

Bibliography

  1. Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1373926431

Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.