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René Descartes
René Descartes was a French philosopher, mathematician, and writer. He has been dubbed the "Father of Modern Philosophy."
498 Questions
What did René Descartes believe in?
One of the most important discoveries for modern mathematics made by Rene Descartes was the Cartesian coordinate system. Two other major discoveries are the law of reflection and parts of the law of conservation of energy.
Galileo and Descartes both explored scientific theories that challenged long accepted notions. There new ideas were perceived as a threat or heretical because they disagreed with strongly held religious beliefs. They both published their ideas at a time when the Church was an extremely powerful entity and important in many peoples' lives, so the Church's objection to their teachings had serious consequences.
Where is Rene Descartes hometown?
It is a town in central France which was renamed Descartes in his honour,
How did Francis Bacon and Rene Descartes each approach the new scientific method?
They both contributed to the Scientific method. Francis Bacon did this to make sure that they did not having false thoughts/teachings. Descartes said to gain knowledge to follow those steps. They helped create a new approach to science. Over time, people started calling this new approach the scientific method.
Why did René Descartes invent scientific notation?
I'm not sure that Descartes invented scientific notation. No offense: Descartes was a brilliant and important figure, but this is hardly the achievement to remember him for.
Descartes did introduce the modern notation for exponentiation (7x3 for example) in his Geometrie, published in 1637. I think we make a bigger deal of this notational innovation than it really is: the concept of exponentiation was alive and well already, and other mathematicians used notation remarkably close to this (Hume would have written 7xiii for example).
The idea that very large or very small numbers need special notation certainly did not begin or end with Descartes. We are constantly finding new ways to write inconveniently scaled numbers: $3B rather than $3 x 109 or $3,000,000,000 or 4GB rather than 4,294,967,296 bytes. If you've ever heard someone say something like "the mass of the sun in kilograms is 2 followed by 30 zeros," that person has had the same basic idea.
As to your question "why" we have scientific notation (or any of these other ways to deal with inconveniently scaled numbers), I think there are two reasons:
1. It helps us deal with the scale of these numbers better. What I mean by this is that 2,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 Kg is really hard to read or say, while 2.0 x 1030Kg is more manageable. When we do computation with these numbers (for example, dividing a kilogram of water by the mass of a single water molecule to get the number of molecules), scientific notation is especially convenient.
2. It reminds us that only the first few digits actually mean anything. That figure up there for 4GB is a good illustration: we don't usually care about the *exact* number of bytes, we just care whether the memory in our computer 1GB, 2GB, or 4GB. In physical measurements typically used in science or engineering, we simply can't measure precisely enough that the *exact* number matters. That's why 2 x 1030Kg means something different than 2.0 x 1030Kg (the difference tells me something about how good the measurement is).
What did Rene descartes discover about rainbows and how their formed?
Rene Descartes discovered that rainbows have a scientific and mathematical element to them that could explain their presence. He was able to determine that the whole universe could be explained through science and math.
Did Rene descartes make m the variable for slope?
Rene Descartes invented the Cartesian coordinate system and the idea of the x-y axis. He used the coordinate system to express equations and formulas visually through slopes and lines. He created a slope for the equation, rather than the equation for a slope.
Who helped advance the importance of human reasoning?
Descartes said that after he denied that he existed and came to the conclusion that he existed because he thinks, therefore he is real and exists.
How is the scientific method based on Francis Bacon and Rene Descartes?
Both Descartes and Bacon had their own step-by-step methods that were created before the scientific method. The idea of answering scientific or philosophical questions in an ordered way came from Bacon and Descartes and is the basis of the scientific method.
What is Francis Bacon's Impact on the Enlightenment?
Francis Bacon (English, 1561-1626 CE) viewed the universe as governed by universal laws. These laws can be discovered and tested using rational inquiry and experiment. Francis Bacon used inductive reasoning to gather small bits of evidence through experiments and drawing larger conclusions.
What belief about nature did Francis Bacon Rene descartes share?
reliogious faith and meditation were the keys to studying nature.
How was René Descartes an enlightenment thinker?
Questioning everything was the key to the enlightenment, and that is what he did. He even began doubting his own exsistance
What are René Descartes' contributions to the society?
Descartes created the Cartesian coordinates and the Cartesian curves and has often been given credit for analytical geometry.
he was a mathmatician
What were René Descartes remarks?
A state is better governed which has few laws, and those laws strictly observed.
BY MEHAK SAPRA
