The brilliant scientist, physicist, mathematician, inventor, writer, philosopher and religious thinker Blaise Pascal was an unusually gifted person.
Pascal's father Etienne was the chairman of the tax office. He was well versed in mathematics and explored the algebraic curve of the 4th order, named after him "Pascal's snail." Etienne was familiar with such famous mathematicians as Fermat and Descartes.
It was Etienne who drew up the training plan for Blaise Pascal. According to this plan, from the age of 12, Blaise was supposed to study ancient languages, and he planned to introduce his son to mathematics at the age of 15. But Blaise's acquaintance with mathematics happened much earlier. He was very interested in geometry. Although he did not know geometric terms and called a circle a “ring” and a straight line a “wand”, he began to find relationships between them, and was soon able to prove the Euclidean theorem on the sum of the angles of a triangle. After that, with the help of his father, he began to study the geometry of Euclid, got acquainted with the works of Archimedes.
The first scientific successes
In 1639, when Pascal was only 16 years old, he formulated one of the main theorems of projective geometry - Pascal's theorem about a triangle inscribed in a circle or any other conic section.
At the same age, he studied conic sections.
After 2 years, Pascal began work on the creation of the first computing machine. It was a box, inside of which there were gears connected to each other. Pascal's machine performed the simplest mathematical operations. It was a primitive adding machine that became the basis of most computing devices.
Studying the probability of winning, Pascal laid the foundation for the theory of probability, which he called "the mathematics of chance."
Pascal and physics
Physics was Blaise Pascal's second passion. He confirmed Torricelli's assumption that atmospheric pressure exists. In addition, he suggested that with increasing altitude, atmospheric pressure decreases. And when, in 1647, according to Pascal's descriptions, an experiment was carried out, it turned out that at the top of the mountain the pressure of the atmosphere was indeed lower than at the base.
Pascal proved that air has weight and calculated the approximate mass of the atmosphere. He suggested using a barometer to predict the weather, as he found that barometer readings depend on temperature and humidity.
In 1653 Pascal formulated basic law of hydrostatics, Wherebythe pressure on the liquid is transferred by it uniformly without change in all directions. This law is called pascal's law, but himselfPascal is considered the founder of classical hydrostatics - the science of a liquid or gas in a state of equilibrium (rest).
The ability of a fluid to transmit pressure in all directions without change was the basis for the design of hydraulic and pneumatic devices.
On the basis of Pascal's law, hydraulic presses, hydraulic lifts, fueling units, sprayers, water jets, pneumatic pipelines, etc., have been built.
Unfortunately, the life of a brilliant scientist was short. His health had steadily deteriorated since 1658. Terrible headaches tormented him. Physically, he became very weak, although he was only 35 years old. Doctors forbade any mental stress. And in 1660 Pascal looked like an old man.
Blaise Pascal died in 1662.
The SI unit of pressure is named after Pascal. One of the first programming languages is called Pascal. The university in Clermont-Ferrand bears the name of Pascal.
What the French physicist and mathematician, polemicist and writer invented, you will learn from this article.
Blaise Pascal discoveries, inventions, achievements
Blaise Pascal contributions to computer science
The future inventor was born in the family of a well-known mathematician at that time. Therefore, he did not go to school, and his father replaced teachers. He instilled in him a love of mathematics and from an early age the boy could perform complex calculations. At the age of 15, Pascal interacted with Parisian scientists on an equal footing, discussing complex problems in mathematics. A year later, the young man conducted his first research, and it became clear that a bright future awaits him, and the world will see a new mathematical genius.
Blaise Pascal decided to facilitate the work of his father, who held the post of royal and official, and decided to create an arithmetic machine. The scrupulous work on the adding machine lasted for three whole years. Blaise Pascal's calculating machine made him famous all over the world. A small brass box, which had a complex mechanism, was exhibited at the Luxembourg Palace. This invention became a kind of foundation for the creation of computer science, because his machine made automatic calculations that a modern computer does today.
Blaise Pascal, whose invention was called the new wonder of the world, was already carried away by a new topic - atmospheric pressure. The scientist was sure that weather conditions could be measured using a mercury column in a glass tube. Due to this conclusion, managed to discover the laws of fluid pressure.
After the death of his father and some events in his life, Pascal decided to leave for a monastery. Once, while in his cell, he felt a terrible toothache. And in order to somehow distract himself from the pain, he began to think about the mathematical curve. Caught up by an unknown inspiration, Pascal began to prove one theorem after another. He was the first to get so close approached the creation of the foundations of higher mathematics, but, unfortunately, did not have time to do this.
The portrait of Blaise Pascal has become a familiar illustration on the pages of textbooks on physics and mathematics. What did the famous Frenchman give to the world?
His famous expressions and philosophical phrases come to mind:
- Our ear for flattery is a wide open door, but for truth it is the eye of a needle;
- The greatness of man is great in that he is aware of his insignificance;
- Woe to people who do not know the meaning of their lives.
A physicist, religious philosopher, scientist and writer, Pascal stood at the origins of computer science, his outstanding creation is considered to be a summing machine, which was later given the usual name today - a calculator.
A huge number of works are based on number theory and probability theory. Pascal was the founder of mathematical analysis, made the first example of a calculating machine and formed the basic law of hydrostatics.
short biography
On June 19, 1623, in the south of France, in the suburbs of Clermont-Ferrand, a third child was born in the family of a lawyer and judge, Etienne Pascal, who was named Blaise.
The outstanding giftedness of the child and the desire of the father to develop the mental abilities of his son forced the family to move to Paris in 1631.
Here, father and son begin to work diligently in mathematics. Their house hosts math evenings, in which 16-year-old Blaise actively participates. At the same time, his work "Experiment on Conic Sections", known today as Pascal's theorem, appears.
Regular workloads in mathematics, for which Blaise had a special zeal, began to seriously affect his well-being. For a change in climate and a medical examination of Blaise, in January 1940, the family was forced to move to Rouen. The father insists that the son stop doing scientific work. Pascal Jr. submits and begins to lead a secular lifestyle.
Blaise Pascal and religion
In 1646, an event occurs that completely changes the fate of Pascal. His acquaintance with the religious trend of Jansenism makes one wonder if his activity is objectionable to God? On a November night in 1664, Blaise was visited by an insight from above, the essence of which even his father did not know.
Pascal cuts off all secular ties and asks the head of the Port-Royal monastery to become his spiritual superior and leaves Paris. Years from 1656 to 1657 the young Pascal spends in a monastery.
From here, his scandalous “Letters to a Provincial” are published, which gave rise to the beginning of the social movement of the Jansenists against the Jesuit order. The publication of Letters to a Provincial had the effect of an "explosive device". The day after the article was published, 60 doctors left the Sorbonne in protest against the illegal receptions of the theological faculty. And although the book is published under a pseudonym, Blaise has to take every precaution.
In 1652, Pascal had a desire to take up the Apology of the Christian Religion. Things didn't go beyond draft notes. Blaise's health has deteriorated greatly and doctors strongly discourage mental work. These circumstances prevent the scientist from compiling the "Apology" into one fundamental work.
On August 19, 1662, the religious philosopher Blaise Pascal dies. He is buried next to the Parisian parish church of Saint-Étienne-du-Mont.
The name of an outstanding scientist and philosopher is a university in France, the Pascal programming language and one of the craters on the moon.
After his death, friends found hundreds of scraps of pages with strange and unfinished phrases. And only in 1669 the deciphered book "Thoughts on Religion and Other Subjects" was published.
Blaise grew up as a curious and gifted child. He was fascinated by literature, attracted by complex arithmetic operations and attracted by the mystery of the sciences. The young man found riddles even in the most ordinary phenomena.
After himself, Blaise Pascal left many interesting discoveries and amazing facts. He invented a calculating machine to help his father, who in his work was engaged in complex calculations. The young man invented a counting device that performed arithmetic operations with six-digit numbers. After this, Pascal was called the "French Archimedes".
Trying to create a perpetual motion mechanism, in his experiments, Blaise used a weight that rotated on a flywheel. It was this invention that found an unexpected application in roulette.
In 1954, his works on the relationship between man and God are being prepared for publication. These manuscripts contain evidence for a reasonable belief based on the theory of the game (there is a god or there is no god), later known as "Pascal's Wager". In the book "Thoughts", which will be published after the death of the philosopher, all the remaining materials are collected. Blaise Pascal devoted the last years of his life to writing them.
"Pascal's Wager" is a controversial question, what to bet on in life - on atheism or religion? Blaise chose God. He said that at least you won’t lose anything, but at the maximum you will gain immortality and eternal life.
Blaise Pascal was one of the great French, whose portraits are decorated with banknotes. He was the only one who attended Mersenne's venerable mathematical circle from the age of 13, in which outstanding scientists of Paris were involved.
He left to posterity his wisdom and amazing simplicity in short phrases and long statements. The words that have passed through him for all the fleeting and such a bright life:
- The greatest privilege that is given to a person from above is to be the cause of good changes in someone's life;
- We never live in the present, we all just look forward to the future and rush it like it's late, or call on the past and try to bring it back like it's gone too soon;
- Evil deeds are never done so easily and willingly as in the name of religious convictions.
In many countries, from time immemorial, there has been a tradition to place portraits of great compatriots on banknotes. In 1969, a denomination of 500 francs with a portrait of Blaise Pascal was put into circulation in France. We'll talk about him.
This letter is so long because I didn't have time to write it shorter.
Blaise Pascal
Freedom of speech!
In the 16th century, “Letters to a Provincial” circulated in France, dedicated to the discussion of complex theological issues. The letters aroused the anger and dissatisfaction of the authorities, because they criticized the position of the Jesuit order. This order, with the blessing of the Pope, had a huge impact on the rulers of most European countries, not excluding France. The Jesuits were furious, but even with the help of the authorities they could not do anything, since the author was hiding behind the pseudonym Louis de Montalt. The investigators who hunted for the author of the letters were controlled by Chancellor Seguier himself, who did not suspect that he personally knew the one he was so persistently looking for. The author was Blaise Pascal.
“Attempts were made to show the Jesuits as disgusting,” Voltaire wrote many years later, “Pascal did much more: he showed them funny.” During the life of Blaise Pascal, his authorship was never established.
And the letters are great. Most connoisseurs agree that they were written in impeccable French. In Russia, "Letters to a Provincial" were also very popular, many learned French from them. In total, Blaise Pascal wrote 18 letters.
Geometry according to Pascal
Have you noticed that here the surname Pascal is always found together with the given name? This is no coincidence. In honor of Blaise Pascal, a unit of pressure is named, in France an annual prize is awarded in his name for achievements in science, the university in Clermont-Ferrand bears the name of Blaise Pascal, and programming language is studied in schools Pascal, and there is a crater on the Moon with the same name.
In mathematics we meet Pascal's theorem, Pascal's arithmetic triangle, Pascal's snail... Stop! Blaise Pascal has nothing to do with her.
A flat curve called "Pascal's snail" was studied and introduced into geometry by Etienne Pascal, the father of our hero. When Blaise was twelve years old, he persuaded his father to tell him about geometry. If Etienne Pascal knew what kind of genie he set free!
Young Pascal spent all his free time studying geometry. No, he didn't study it from textbooks. Blaise himself found patterns in triangles, circles and other figures, and he himself proved their truth. One day, the father was surprised to find that his son had independently formulated and proved that the sum of the angles of any triangle is the same as the two angles of a square. But this is nothing more than the 32nd sentence of the first book of Euclid - the theorem on the sum of the interior angles of a triangle!
This story is misleading to many. For some reason, they believe that since young Blaise proved the 32nd proposition, he deduced and proved all the previous propositions. Probably not, but that doesn't change things. Blaise Pascal became interested in science for the rest of his, unfortunately short, life.
Insidious Cardinal Richelieu
Justice must be strong, and force must be just.
Blaise Pascal
We live in the Cenozoic era. It has been going on for about 65 million years, so there are no witnesses of its birth left. And my generation was lucky, we witnessed the birth of the space era. But those who think that the era of computer technology was born in the 20th century are mistaken. It happened much earlier, and involved in this, albeit indirectly, none other than Cardinal Richelieu himself, the same one that Dumas wrote about in The Three Musketeers.
A man of outstanding intelligence and rare cunning, Cardinal Richelieu knew how to turn any unfavorable situation to his advantage and, frankly, to the advantage of France. Carrying out one of these cunning combinations, the cardinal, without knowing it, contributed to the creation of a completely reliable counting device.
And here's what happened. Etienne Pascal received income from government securities, that is, he lived on rent. But in 1638, due to the difficulties of the Thirty Years' War, Chancellor Séguier stopped paying this income. Dissatisfied rentiers, and among them Etienne Pascal, staged a protest at Seguier's house. The most active rebels were put in the Bastille, and Etienne fled to a remote province.
But trouble happened - Jacqueline's daughter fell ill with smallpox. She remained for treatment in Paris, and her father, despite the danger of infection, visited her. Having recovered, Jacqueline took part in the performance, which was attended by Richelieu himself. The cardinal was delighted with the play of the young actress, and she, taking advantage of the favorable moment, asked for her father.
And here it is - the deceit of the cardinal: he forgave Étienne Pascal for the sake of his daughter and, moreover, appointed him to the post of intendant of the province in Rouen. Now the former leader of the troublemakers, willy-nilly, pursued the policy of the cardinal.
count so count
By position, the intendant of the province is in charge of all economic affairs under the governor, so Etienne Pascal has a lot of accounting work. His son Blaise helped him in this. Now, from computer heights (where mistakes also happen), you can look with a grin at "poor counters shoveling mountains of numbers manually." And in those days, four centuries ago, who knows how to divide one integer by another, was considered, if not a genius, then at least an unusually smart person.
The best books are those that readers think they could write themselves.Blaise Pascal
And seventeen-year-old Blaise Pascal decided to create a mechanical device that "allows you to free your mind from arithmetic calculations." Half of the whole thing - the design of the mechanism design - did not take much time. But the other half - bringing the project to life - required five whole years of hard work. After carefully thought-out tests and checks, the machine is shown in Paris. Chancellor Seguier himself approves of the work and allocates to Blaise Pascal a royal privilege for the production and sale of such machines. In total, Blaise Pascal made about fifty of his adding machines, one of which he presented to Queen Christina of Sweden.
Alas, our life is arranged in such a way that if the glory of the “first” is assigned to someone, then there will definitely be someone else who has done the same before. Perhaps the most striking example is the discovery of America. It is generally accepted that Christopher Columbus discovered America. But 500 years before him, the Viking Leif the Happy had already visited there, and even founded settlements. And, apparently, the Norwegian Gunnbjorn (900) was ahead of him by a century.
Let us learn to think well - this is the basic principle of morality.
Blaise Pascal
Of course, a huge continent and an arithmetic machine are incomparable in scale, but they have a common fate. Twenty years before Blaise Pascal, the German scientist Schickard had already built something similar. But his typewriter could only add and subtract, and Blaise Pascal's adding machine performed four operations on five-digit numbers!
So the owners of the current heavy-duty computers, on occasion, can lay flowers on the grave of the insidious cardinal.
Emptiness
When water is pumped, the water itself rises after the piston, not allowing an empty space to form between the piston and the surface of the water. In ancient times, Aristotle explained this by saying that "nature does not tolerate emptiness."
But one day the incredible happened. During the construction of a large fountain in Florence, the water, as it should be, obediently rose behind the pump piston, but at a height of about 10 meters it suddenly became stubborn and stopped. The builders turned to Galileo himself for clarification. Togo was occupied with other problems, and he laughed it off, saying that starting from such a height, nature ceases to be afraid of emptiness.
Jokes aside, but Galileo suggested that the height of the rise of a liquid depends on its density: how many times the density of the liquid is greater, so many times the height of the rise is less. He instructed his students Torricelli and Viviani to understand this incomprehensible phenomenon. In order not to bother with long glass tubes, the students began to use mercury instead of water. As a result of their research, an ingeniously simple experiment was born that everyone could, if not repeat, then see how someone else does it. Almost all school textbooks contain descriptions and images of this experience. A one-meter glass tube sealed at one end is completely filled with mercury. The open end of the tube is clamped with a finger, the tube is turned over and immersed in a vessel with mercury. Then the finger is removed. And what? The level of mercury in the tube will drop and stop at a height of 2.5 feet (760 mm) above the surface of the mercury in the vessel.
The level of water in the tube is 13.6 times higher than the level of mercury, and exactly the same number of times the density of water is less than the density of mercury - a remarkable confirmation of Galileo's assumption. Torricelli concluded that there was nothing in the tube above the mercury (the famous "Torricelli void"). And that mercury does not pour out, so the pressure of atmospheric air does not allow it to do so.
But what does Blaise Pascal have to do with all this? The most direct: after all, it is not by chance that the unit of measurement of pressure bears his name. Few are honored with such an honor.
In those distant times, radio and television had not yet been invented, and there was nothing to say about the Internet, so information about the amazing experiences of Italians with emptiness did not reach Rouen immediately. Of course, Blaise Pascal became interested in the “Torricellian void”. He repeated the experiments of the Italians and got the same results. To the delight of the people of Rouen, he carried out his experiments right on the street in full view of everyone.
But Blaise Pascal was not limited to repetition. He checked the dependence of the height of a liquid column on its density. Various oils, sugar and salt solutions were used, the density of which can be changed by adding new portions of sugar or salt. The Rouenese especially liked the experiments with the numerous varieties of wines that France is so famous for. Imagine a whole barrel of wine, and above it rises a tall glass tube, also filled with wine. Naturally, everyone was happy to help the young Blaise Pascal. The results of the experiments once again brilliantly confirmed Galileo's brilliant assumption.
But what fills the tube above the mercury surface? There was an opinion that there is a certain substance that "does not have any properties." Just like in a fairy tale - go there, I don’t know where, bring something, I don’t know what. Blaise Pascal states decisively: since this matter does not have any properties and cannot be detected, then it simply does not exist. And whoever disagrees with this, let him be able to prove its presence.
It is not so easy to understand, let alone repeat, a modern physical experiment. But Blaise Pascal could easily show that very “emptiness” today and teach everyone who wants to receive it themselves. Take a plastic syringe (no needle), fill with water and bleed out excess air. Plug the syringe with your finger and forcefully pull back on the plunger. The air dissolved in it will begin to evaporate from the water. Remove your finger and release this air. Repeat the procedure several times. Soon, most of the dissolved air will evaporate and, pulling back the piston once again, you will get almost empty space above the water.
Not only the truth itself gives confidence, but the mere search for it gives peace...
Blaise Pascal
And chance, god is the inventor...
In those days, people often played dice. And so Blaise Pascal was given the following task: “How many times do you need to roll two dice at once so that the probability that two sixes will fall out at least once on both dice exceeds the probability that two sixes will not fall out even once?” The fact is that when counting in different ways, different answers were obtained, which is why there was even an opinion about the “inconstancy of mathematics”.
Blaise Pascal coped brilliantly with this problem and began to consider others, in particular the problem of the division of rates. And the point here is not in the condition of the problem, it is unnecessarily cumbersome, but in the fact that at that time no one else could even correctly formulate it. Naturally, no one could understand the solution proposed by Blaise Pascal.
Although this is not entirely true. There was one person in Europe who understood and appreciated the ideas of Blaise Pascal - Pierre Fermat (the one who formulated the "Great Fermat Theorem").
Fermat solved the staking problem differently from Pascal, and some disagreements arose between them. But after an exchange of letters, they came to an agreement.
“Our understanding has been completely restored,” writes Blaise Pascal. “I see that there is only one truth in Toulouse and in Paris.”
They continued to exchange letters, and eventually the theory of probability was born from this correspondence.
Not a single branch of physics can do without the theory of probability, the foundations of which were laid by Blaise Pascal. Nothing can ever be measured exactly. It is also impossible to absolutely accurately predict the behavior of individual particles and entire mechanisms. Everything - both the results of experiments and the predicted models of behavior - is probabilistic in nature.
Thank you very much passenger
About a century and a half ago, everything that was in Moscow beyond the Boulevard Ring was considered the outskirts. Moscow was so small compared to today. But stomping on foot from end to end was still very tiring.
In Europe, there were cities and more. True, cab drivers were working with might and main, but go and wait for them somewhere on a remote outskirts.
And in the fall of 1661, Blaise Pascal suggested that the Duke de Roanne organize a cheap and affordable way to travel in multi-seat carriages along strictly defined routes. Everyone liked the idea, and on March 18, 1662, the first public transport route was opened in Paris, called omnibus(translated from Latin - "for everyone").
The self-evident and obvious should not be defined: the definition will only obscure it.
Blaise Pascal
So, reading a book in the subway or rocking in the tram, we must remember Blaise Pascal with gratitude.
Unfortunately, Blaise Pascal was not in good health, often fell ill and died before reaching the age of 40. He was born June 19, 1623 and died August 19, 1662.
In fact, there are vapors above the column of liquid: a very small amount for mercury, but noticeable for water.
Pascal Blaise (1623-1662)
French mathematician, physicist, philosopher, writer.
Born in the family of one of the best lawyers in the city of Clermont-Ferrand. The father, deeply interested in mathematics, instilled a love for this science in his son, who later became one of the greatest mathematicians and physicists in France.
Blaise's incredible successes are still considered a vivid manifestation of talent, bordering on genius.
He wrote his first treatise on mathematics at the age of 17. Further, his discoveries followed one after another. However, success did not turn his head, and by the age of 30 he was deeply immersed in religion and philosophy.
Blaise became a follower of Jansenism, a doctrine that contradicted orthodox Catholicism and denied free will, recognized predestination and demanded asceticism and uncompromising ethical self-improvement from its adherents.
The Jesuits were enemies of the Jansenists, and in connection with this, the scientist wrote the book Letters to a Provincial, a masterpiece of satirical prose, which proves the complete failure of the Jesuit doctrines.
Pascal spent the last years of his life in the monastery of Port-Royal-d-Champs, the intellectual heart of the capital of France.
After his death, his work "Thoughts" was published, which was published by close friends and admirers. In Thoughts, Pascal develops an idea of the tragedy and fragility of a person who is between two abysses - infinity and insignificance (man is a "thinking reed").
Everything that Pascal wrote about was deeply experienced and suffered by him. About himself, he said: "I am only with those who, groaning, seek the truth."
There are a lot of incomprehensible words, and who knows a lot. Attack is not bad at all.
