Leonardo Pisano, also known as Fibonacci
- Born:
- c. 1170, Pisa (likely)
- Died:
- c. 1250, Pisa (likely)
- Nationality:
- Italian
- Profession(s):
- Mathematician
Early Life and Education
- Leonardo Pisano, commonly known as Fibonacci, was born in Pisa, likely around 1170.
- His father, Guglielmo Bonacci, was a merchant and customs official in Bugia, Algeria.
- Fibonacci traveled with his father and received instruction in mathematics from Arab tutors. This exposure to Arabic numerals and mathematics proved crucial to his later work.
Career and Major Achievements
- Fibonacci is credited with introducing the Hindu-Arabic numeral system (including the decimal system) to Europe.
- He played a significant role in replacing Roman numerals with the more efficient and practical Hindu-Arabic system.
- His work greatly advanced mathematical study in Europe and laid the foundation for future developments in mathematics and science.
Notable Works
- Liber Abaci (1202, revised 1228): This book explained the Hindu-Arabic numeral system and its practical applications to commercial transactions, interest calculations, money-changing, and weight and measure conversions. It contains the earliest known description of the Fibonacci sequence.
- Liber Quadratorum (1225): This work is considered Fibonacci's masterpiece and focuses on Diophantine problems and number theory.
- Flos (1225): This book contained solutions to problems posed by Johannes of Palermo, a member of the court of Emperor Frederick II.
Fibonacci Sequence
A key contribution of the matematico fibonacci biography is undoubtedly the propagation of the Fibonacci sequence, where each number is the sum of the two preceding ones (e.g., 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8...). While the sequence was known before Fibonacci, his Liber Abaci brought it to the attention of European scholars, where its properties and connections to nature have fascinated mathematicians and scientists ever since.
Legacy and Impact
Fibonacci's introduction of the Hindu-Arabic numeral system and his exploration of mathematical concepts like the Fibonacci sequence had a profound and lasting impact on the development of mathematics and science in Europe.