How Have the Yoruba People Contributed to Modern Mathematics Essay

How Have the Yoruba People Contributed to Modern Mathematics - Essay Example Although people normally think of mathematics as coming from a European tradition, there is also a strong African tradition of mathematics.   This tradition goes all the way back to ancient Egypt when early mathematicians devised the formulas necessary to build the Great Pyramids.   It is the basic assumption of the current report that two important additions to mathematics made by Africa include innovations from Egypt and from the Yoruba tradition, and that these additions have direct relationships to the modern world today, in terms of connecting mainstream mathematics with African traditions. First of all, there is the Egyptian tradition, as mentioned in Lumpkin’s in-depth research on mathematics.   As noted, Egypt had a rich tradition of mathematics and geometry in very ancient times.   Ancient times can be connected to modern times, as this author notes because today they feel â€Å"fortunate to have been alerted to a reference to "an Egyptian zero" while discussing AE mathematics with Egyptologist Frank Yurco in Chicago. This reference was based not on a mathematical papyrus, but on balance sheets in papyrus Bulaq 18† (Lumpkin, 2009).   This Bulaq was a bookkeeping record kept by the ancient Egyptians thousands of years ago, showing that although these years have passed, we have something in common with the ancient world.   The idea of true zero is a very mathematically advanced one that has been discovered by many cultures.   It is not just Europe but also places like Africa and China, where the ancient meets the modern in mathematical theory.à ‚   People in bookkeeping today are still using true zero to do such tasks as making absolute transfers.   â€Å"There was also a zero reference level marked on construction lines used as early as 2700 BCE. These lines, still visible at Old Kingdom  pyramids and tombs, show the beginning of metricizing space† (Lumpkin, 2009).   The ancient Egyptian Africans used these advanced mathematical concepts to build their monumental architecture, just like architects today.

Individual report of approximately 1,000 words Coursework

Individual report of approximately 1,000 words - Coursework Example nancial gain through gain in sales, reduced cost of operation, reduction in project overruns and reduction in the time taken to create strategic changes. The performance management objective also involves motivating the workforce by optimizing plans, improving employee engagement, creating transparency, and conducting professional development programs. For improved management control - a flexible, responsible management is required. The management should display data relationships, help audit and comply with the legislative requirements, simplify communications and provide documented system for communications. Spreadsheets are electronic tools similar to various other IT tools; however the code and underlying structure is unknown (MacMillan, 2000). The main advantage of using spreadsheet is that it is easy and simple to use. Moreover, no specific training is needed for using spreadsheets and employees can easily create, distribute, manipulate and access the data of spreadsheets. However, there exist risks of uncontrolled spreadsheet used, which should be analysed to reduce errors. Spreadsheets are used for countless business functions and accounting calculations. It can be used for tracking workflow, for creating accounting estimates and for key financial reporting. Spreadsheets provide instant snapshots of a situation, which can be used for driving critical decisions. The research is based on production and service data of a firm which has been used to calculate the total expense and derive the selling price of finished products. The allocated costs related to printing, finishing, quality control and material handling has been provided in columns along the labour hours and machine hours. The expense on employees, requisitions and maintenance is also given to get the calculations. The relocation cost of the admin department is derived from the formula - Allocated Costs per Employee x Employees without Administration (for printing). Excel sheet has been used