WIAS Seminar: “Wasan at the Crossroads: Towards a Global Study of Japanese Mathematics”（Mar. 29）
Outline
During Edo Japan’s national seclusion, scholars throughout the country developed an idiosyncratic mathematical discourse, now termed wasan (和算). This seminar brings researchers from different denominations and countries together to explore this phenomenon from various angles: from a scientific perspective, by considering the techniques developed by Edo period mathematicians; and from a cultural vantage point, by exploring the unique social dimension that fostered wasan’s progress. In the process, the seminar will touch upon mathematical practices in the abstract but also consider the physical remnants of wasan, in particular sangaku (算額): votive tablets featuring mathematical riddles.
Program
15:15-15:30: Arrival
15:30-16:30: David Clark: A brief Tour of Wasan Techniques
16:30-17:30: Ogawa Tsukane: The Cultural Geography of Sangaku
17:30-18:00: Antonia Karaisl: Preview of the Sangaku Archive Website
18:00-18:20: Open discussion
18:20-18:30: Closing remarks
Speaker
David Clark is a Professor of Mathematics at Randolph-Macon College in Virginia, USA. He was a national Project NExT fellow and received his college’s Art Conway Award for teaching. Originally trained in low-dimensional topology, David has recently become interested in statistics education and math history, and in 2020 received the Mathematical Association of America’s Allendoerfer award for expository writing about the famous Gion shrine problem. Over the last decade he has taken four groups of undergraduate students to Japan to learn about wasan through the cultural phenomenon of sangaku.
Tsukane Ogawa is the Vice-director of the Seki Kowa Institute at Yokkaichi University, as also Professor Emeritus from the same institution. His main scope of interest is the history of mathematics in pre-modern Japan, having studied it for over 30 years. His first book was a translation of the Seki Takakazu’s Hatsubi sanpō into modern Japanese. Together with Kenji Ueno, Tatsuhiko Kobayashi and Kenichi Sato, he has edited the Complete Works of Takakazu Seki, published in 3 Volumes in October 2023.
Moderator
Nathan Camillo Sidoli (Professor, School of International Liberal Studies, Waseda University)
Date & Time
March 29, 2025 (Sat.) 15:30 – 18:30
Venue
Room 314, Bldg. #19, Waseda Campus, Waseda University
Prospected Audience
Students, Graduate students, Researchers, Faculty members, General audience
Language
English
Organizer
Waseda Institute for Advanced Studies (WIAS)
Organized by KARAISL Antonia (Assistant Professor, Waseda Institute for Advanced Studies)
Registration
Registration not required
