MAA Writing Awards
What a Tangent Line Is When It Isn't a Limit
Award: Merten Hasse, and also the George Pólya Award in 1987
Year of Award: 1989
Publication Information: The College Mathematics Journal, Vol. 17, No. 2, (1986), pp. 133-143
Summary: An exploration of a variety of definitions of a tangent line.
About the Author: (from The College Mathematics Journal, Vol. 17, No. 2, (1986)) Irl Bivens is an Associate Professor of Mathematics at Davidson College, where he has been since 1982. In 1979, he received his Ph.D. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, under the direction of Professor Patrick Eberlein. Before coming to Davidson, he taught at Pfeiffer College and was a G.C. Evans Instructor of Mathematics at Rice University. His professional interests include differential geometry, mathematical physics, and the mathematics of the undergraduate curriculum. His nonmathematical interests include science fiction, spy novels, B-movies, his wife Patti, and his son Robert.
