Antoine Parent facts for kids

Antoine Parent (born September 16, 1666 – died September 26, 1716) was a clever French mathematician. He was born and passed away in Paris, France. He made important contributions to mathematics and engineering in the early 1700s.

Who Was Antoine Parent?

Antoine Parent was a brilliant thinker from France. He lived during a time when many new ideas were being explored in science. He is known for his work in a special type of math called analytical geometry.

Parent's Work in Geometry

In 1700, Antoine Parent wrote about analytical geometry in three dimensions. Imagine you want to describe the exact spot of any point on a curved surface, like a ball or a mountain. Parent had the idea to use an equation to do this. This equation would connect three numbers, called coordinates, that pinpoint any spot on that surface. This was a new way to think about shapes and spaces.

Understanding How Beams Bend

Parent also studied how things like wooden beams or metal bars bend. He looked at what happens when a beam is stuck at one end and free at the other, like a diving board. This is called a cantilever beam.

He figured out a correct way to calculate how much these beams would bend. He understood that when a beam bends, the top part stretches, and the bottom part squeezes. In the middle, there's a line where the material doesn't stretch or squeeze at all. This is called the "neutral axis."

Parent's ideas were very advanced for his time. However, his work didn't become widely known right away. It took many more years for scientists to regularly use these kinds of principles. Eventually, his ideas helped engineers design stronger buildings and bridges.

Parent's Collected Works

Antoine Parent's different writings and ideas were gathered together. They were published in three large books in Paris in 1713. These books shared his mathematical and engineering discoveries with the world.