Roman Math

[arklore70]

Folks
I got a burning question. With all the great engineering feats of the Romans, just how did they do and figure all the math out?

How do you do multiplication and division with out a zero or repeating numbers with Roman numerals?

Did they use another numbering system instead?

Has anyone ever tried.

Cheers!!

Mike

[Jona Lendering]

How do you do multiplication and division with out a zero or repeating numbers with Roman numerals?

With difficulty. :wink:

Has anyone ever tried.

Yes, with an abacus. The type is more or less the same all over the world; my experiences were with some Nigerians. I was surprised to see the speed with which they used their abacuses.

In supermarkets, the use of an abacus is as fast as a cash register from the 1970's or 1980's. Cf. this link. Now, supermarkets have laser scans; but you will remember the old type.

If you really want to do your maths fast, learn the sixty-digit system. I have seen people performing amazing acts. Especially division becomes a lot easier. In fact, the sixty-digit system is far more rational (1*2*3*4*5*6) than our decimal system, because the latter is based not on mathematic logic, but on the stupid biological fact that we have ten fingers.

[richsc]

The Romans were schooled heavily in fractions and ratios. They could calculate these quickly, and you can see the results in arches and their artillery. There's a great short book on Roman mathematics (there aren't many)

Numbering and Measuring in the Classical World by William F Richardson