Napier’s Education—a Speculation

Extract

It has been shown that the evolution of logarithms involves consideration of Napier’s knowledge of Greek; this in turn is connected with his “educational and cultural environment”. He certainly studied abroad for some years but where he spent the time is largely a matter for speculation. Now even speculation must be based on some form of reasoning, therefore let it be taken as a hypothesis that as his mathematical equipment was considerably in advance of that of his contemporaries, this equipment must have been the result of ideas planted by his teachers. Consequently an explanation of Napier’s travels may be made by considering his work in mathematics and by discovering similarities in the works of mathematicians who were in Europe during the years of his residence abroad. It must be remembered also that it was a time of acute religious differences, and that he belonged to a family that was ardently Protestant in its sympathies. His own Protestantism is quite openly expressed in his work on the Apocalypse. Therefore these speculations are based on the “historico-religious” background of the period and on Napier’s mathematical attainments.