This essay, from J.J. O'Connor and E.F. Robertson of the University of St. Andrews describes Fermat's theorem with links to mathematicians such as Sophie Germain, Legendre, Dirichlet, Shimura and Taniyama, etc., from its...

Linked essay describing the history of matrices and determinants from the 2nd century B.C. through the early 20th century, with 13 references (books/articles).

Does knowing about Descartes help students understand the Cartesian coordinate system? Will teaching students the origin of the term parabola help them understand the mathematical importance of parabolas and other...