Mathematical Tables

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by Charles Hutton

Charles Hutton (1737-1823) was a British mathematician who published several very influential works throughout his lifetime. At age seven, Hutton injured his right elbow in a street fight which resulted in a permanent disability that caused him to be deemed unfit for hard labor.[1] As a result of his disability, Hutton was sent to school rather than the coal mine where his father worked as a supervisor.[2] After he received his education, Hutton was able to acquire a teaching position that came available when one of his former teachers moved to another school.[3] His success as a teacher combined with his substantial publications quickly garnered him notice. He was appointed the chair of mathematics at the Royal Military Academy, became foreign secretary of the Royal Society, and was awarded the degree of doctor of laws from the University of Edinburgh.[4]

Hutton published a wide variety of materials ranging from bridge construction to calculations on the density of the earth. Hutton’s work titled, Mathematical Tables contained calculations of logarithmic and trigonometric functions. This publication was heavily relied upon by engineers at the time to provide them with the calculations necessary to carry out engineering projects.[5]

Bibliographic Information

Author: Charles Hutton.

Title: Mathematical Tables: Containing the Common, Hyperbolic, and Logistic Logarithms, also Sines, Tangents, Secants, and Versed Sines, Both Natural and Logarithmic.

Publication Info: London: Printed for G.G.J. and J. Robinson, 1785.

Edition: ; xii, 343 pages.

Evidence for Inclusion in Wythe's Library

Description of the Wolf Law Library's copy

Bound in contemporary calf and rebacked. Purchased from Flora books.

Find this book in William & Mary's online catalog.

External Links

Google Books

References

  1. Niccolò Guicciardini “Hutton, Charles (1737–1823)” in Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (Oxford University Press, 2004- ), accessed Oct. 3, 2013. (Subscription required for access.)
  2. Ibid.
  3. Ibid.
  4. Ibid.
  5. "Encyclopedia Britannica 1911’’ online, s.v. “Mathematical Table," accessed October 3, 2013 http://www.theodora.com/encyclopedia/t/mathematical_table.html.