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Early Sundials and the Discovery of the Conic Sections
by W. W. Dolan (Linfield College)
This article originally appeared in:Mathematics Magazine
January, 1972
Subject classification(s): Conics | Analytic Geometry | Cones | Solid Geometry | Geometry and Topology
Applicable Course(s): 4.9 Geometry
This article is part of the Mathematics of Planet Earth 2013 Collection. The author discusses the possibility, raised by O. Neugebauer, that the ancient Greeks became aware of conic sections by observing the action of the sun's shadow on sundials.
A pdf copy of the article can be viewed by clicking below. Since the copy is a faithful reproduction of the actual journal pages, the article may not begin at the top of the first page.
To open this file please click here.
These pdf files are furnished by JSTOR.
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