Henry Briggs (mathematician) facts for kids

Henry Briggs (born February 1, 1561 – died January 26, 1630) was an English mathematician. He is famous for changing the original logarithms invented by John Napier. Briggs made them into what we now call common logarithms, which use a base of 10. These are sometimes called Briggsian logarithms because of his work. He also introduced the specific way we do long division today around the year 1600.

Briggs was a very dedicated Puritan and a respected professor during his time.

Henry Briggs' Early Life and Studies

A map created by Henry Briggs in 1625.

Henry Briggs was born in a place called Daisy Bank, near Halifax, in Yorkshire, England. He went to a local grammar school where he learned Latin and Greek.

In 1577, he started studying at St John's College, Cambridge. He finished his studies in 1581. Later, in 1588, he became a Fellow of St John's College. He also taught physical and mathematical lectures there. During this time, he became very interested in how ships navigate and how stars move. He even worked with another mathematician named Edward Wright.

Teaching and New Ideas

In 1596, Briggs became the first professor of geometry at Gresham College in London. This college was quite new at the time. He taught there for almost 23 years. Briggs helped make Gresham College a very important place for mathematics in England. He supported the new ideas of famous astronomers like Johannes Kepler.

Briggs was friends with Christopher Heydon, who wrote about astrology. However, Briggs himself did not believe in astrology. He thought it was "a mere system of groundless conceits," meaning he believed it had no real basis.

Working with Logarithms

Around this time, Henry Briggs found a book by John Napier called Mirifici Logarithmorum Canonis Descriptio. This book introduced the amazing idea of logarithms. Logarithms are a way to make calculations easier, especially for very large numbers.

Napier's original way of using logarithms was a bit difficult. Briggs, however, was very excited by the idea. In his lectures at Gresham College, he suggested a new way to use logarithms: a base 10 system. This meant that the logarithm of 10 would simply be 1. Soon after, he wrote to Napier to discuss his idea.

Briggs was involved in many different fields. People often asked for his advice on astronomy, surveying, navigation, and even mining.

Later Life and Contributions

In 1616, Briggs traveled to Edinburgh to meet John Napier. They talked about Briggs's suggested changes to logarithms. He visited Napier again the next year for the same reason. During these meetings, they agreed on the changes Briggs had proposed.

After his second visit in 1617, Briggs published the first part of his logarithms. It was called Logarithmorum Chilias Prima. This book contained 14-digit common logarithms for numbers from 1 to 1000.

In 1619, Briggs was given a new job as the Savilian Professor of Geometry at the University of Oxford. He left his teaching job at Gresham College in July 1620.

In 1622, he wrote a short paper about the Northwest Passage to the South Seas. This paper is known today because it helped spread the false idea of the Island of California. Briggs said he had seen a map from Holland that showed California as an island.

In 1624, his most famous work, Arithmetica Logarithmica, was published. This large book contained the logarithms of thirty thousand numbers, calculated to fourteen decimal places. Other mathematicians later finished calculating the remaining logarithms. Briggs was also one of the first to use special methods to create tables of functions.

He also completed a large table of logarithmic sines and tangents. These were printed in 1631 and published in 1633 under the title Trigonometria Britannica.

Henry Briggs passed away on January 26, 1630. He was buried in the chapel of Merton College, Oxford. People remembered him as an honest man who didn't care much for wealth. He preferred a quiet life of study. The lunar crater Briggs on the Moon is named in his honor.

See also

In Spanish: Henry Briggs para niños

• BKM algorithm
• CORDIC algorithm