Math Department (Thesis/2007-08)

Magic Squares and Their History

Under the direction of: Kim Plofker

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The topics in this set have a math-historical focus. History of mathematics is still a very under-studied field, and even a one-semester undergraduate thesis can potentially uncover new and interesting results that researchers and teachers in the field would be eager to know. Students interested in these topics are encouraged to consider planning and structuring their theses for publication, with the assistance of the instructor.

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The currently popular genre of sudoku math puzzles is based on the ancient mathematical concept of a magic square: an $n \times n$ array of integers where the sum of the $n$ integers in each row, column or diagonal of the array is constant. This topic treats the history of magic squares in Asia and the West and their relationship to the development of early combinatorics and number theory.

Math Department web pages Created: 25 Apr 2007 Last modified: Fri Apr 27 06:43:16 2007 Comments to: math@union.edu

Thesis Topics - A. Taylor Thesis Topics for 2007-2008 Thesis Topics - K. Plofker