Abigayle Galo

F111-Fall 2014-Section 003

Creative Activity

Ren Descartes
As French philosopher, scientist and mathematician, Ren Descartes was famous
and quite brilliant. From his work we have Cartesian geometry, which is his
mathematical method of interpreting such logical mechanics as algebra and geometry.
Descartes was devoted to finding truth in science, and because of this, he was often
skeptical of well established scientists, attacking works including those of Sextus
Empiricus, dealing with having no beliefs about philosophical, scientific or theoretical
matters. Such knowledge stemmed from his early schooling.
Ren Descartes was born in 1596 to Joachim Descartes and Jeanne Brochard. He
had two older siblings, named Jeanne and Pierre. When Rens mother died, his
grandmother cared for him at La Haye. Descartes obtained his education at Jesuit College
of La Flche, and then attended the college at Easter. He mainly studied logic,
mathematics, astronomy, and philosophy. However, after years of studying, Descartes
found that the only subject that sparked his interest was mathematics. He himself said, I
took pleasure, above all, in mathematics, because of the certainty and the absoluteness of
its reasons; but I had not yet found out its true use; and, thinking that it served only for
the mechanical arts, was astonished that, its foundations being so firm and solid, nothing
had ever been built on them that was more exalted.

In 1614, Descartes felt the need to leave the college. Between 1614 and 1618, not
much is known of what happened in Descartes life. It has been presumed that he spend
much of these years in Paris, continuing to study, receiving a law degree from the
University of Poitiers. This degree was earned to appease his fathers wishes, but
Descartes quickly dismissed the occupation, as it was not suitable to him. For a few short
years he joined two different armies, the army of Maurice of Nassau first, then the army
of Maximilian of Bavaria, all the while continuing to study science and mathematics.
Then, from 1620 to 1628, Descartes began a new chapter in his life, one that
would take him all through Europe, but eventually settled down in Holland. There, he
began some of is major works, including Le Monde, ou Trait de la Lumire, La
Dioptrique, and La Gomtrie. By far, La Gomtrie was one of the most important parts
of his works. It established a system of reference, and intertwined ideas of geometry and
algebra. Many before Descartes works had mentioned the science of algebra and
geometry, but none thus far had connected the two mathematic principles.
For years, Ren Descartes continued to unlock new ideas about mathematical
theories. However, in 1649 the Queen of Sweden, Queen Christina, requested Descartes
to come to Stockholm in order to benefit from his direct teaching. Unfortunately, after a
few short months of the rigorous work schedule of getting up every morning at five in the
chilling northern climate, he caught pneumonia and died on February 11, 1650.
Nevertheless, his legacy did not die with him as his research and theories have continued
to impact the way researchers approach the sciences.

Works Cited
J J O'Connor and E F Robertson, Ren Descartes, Descartes biography, Nov. 2014,
Web, Dec 2. ,( http://www-history.mcs.st-and.ac.uk/Biographies/Descartes.html )