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Math's Greatest Minds Trivia Quiz

Working with a infinitely large set of numbers, mathematicians are able to prove some of the most insane concepts. See if you know the great minds behind some of the concepts we learn of and use today.

A multiple-choice quiz by dijonmustard. Estimated time: 6 mins.

Author
dijonmustard

Time
6 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
259,725

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Difficult

Avg Score
5 / 10

Plays
934

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. Which mathematician proved the famous formula e^(i*pi) + 1 = 0? Hint

Leonhard Euler

Abraham de Moivre

Blaise Pascal

Pierre de Fermat

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Question 2 of 10

2. Which mathematician had worked with number theory and claimed to have found that x^n + y^n = z^n has no positive integer solutions if n is greater than 2? Hint

Ren� Descartes

Abraham de Moivre

Pierre de Fermat

Gilles Personne de Roberval

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Question 3 of 10

3. Which mathematician had published "The Elements", and has influenced the study of geometry for around 2000 years? Hint

Pythagoras

Thales

Archimedes

Euclid

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Question 4 of 10

4. Which mathematician had developed the "method of indivisibles" and published "Geometria Indivisibilis"? Hint

Marin Mersenne

Evangelista Torricelli

Vincenzo Viviani

Bonaventura Cavalieri

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Question 5 of 10

5. Which mathematician had studied the involute of a circle, and used this knowledge to patent the first pendulum clock? Hint

Ren� Descartes

Christiaan Huygens

Marin Mersenne

Sir Christopher Wren

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Question 6 of 10

6. Which mathematician, at the age of 18, proved (or to be more precise, reproved) that for every n there is a prime between n and 2n. Hint

Pafnuty Lvovich Chebyshev

Paul Erdos

Joseph Louis Fran�ois Bertrand

Viktor Yakovlevich Bunyakovsky

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Question 7 of 10

7. Which mathematician had studied binomial coefficients, published a book on it, and had a "triangle" named after him? Hint

Blaise Pascal

Pierre de Fermat

Sir Isaac Newton

Girolamo Cardano

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Question 8 of 10

8. Which mathematician is remembered for his theorem (cos x + i sin x)^n = (cos nx + i sin nx)? Hint

Abraham de Moivre

Pierre de Fermat

Leonhard Euler

Blaise Pascal

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Question 9 of 10

9. Which mathematician was the first to factor out (2^67 - 1) using quadratic remainders? Hint

Fran�ois Edouard Anatole Lucas

Eug�ne Charles Catalan

Marin Mersenne

Frank Nelson Cole

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Question 10 of 10

10. Which mathematician's most famous work is a formula that can be used to find the area of a triangle with just the lengths of the sides? Hint

Euclid

Theodorus

Pythagoras

Heron

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Which mathematician proved the famous formula e^(i*pi) + 1 = 0?

Answer: Leonhard Euler

"Euler's Identity" is one of the most famous formulas in the world of mathematics, as it ties together the five most important constants: 0, 1, pi, and the imaginary i.

2. Which mathematician had worked with number theory and claimed to have found that x^n + y^n = z^n has no positive integer solutions if n is greater than 2?

Answer: Pierre de Fermat

Fermat's theory came to be known as "Fermat's Last Theorem". During Fermat's life, no one had proven it, but Fermat did write: "I have discovered a truly remarkable proof which this margin is too small to contain." In the past decades, however, Andrew Wiles had proven the theorem.

3. Which mathematician had published "The Elements", and has influenced the study of geometry for around 2000 years?

Answer: Euclid

In his book, "The Element", Euclid of Alexandria gave five postulates that set the basis for Euclidian geometry. However, it was only by the 19th century that Euclid's last postulate was proven to be false, giving the way for non-Euclidian geometry.

4. Which mathematician had developed the "method of indivisibles" and published "Geometria Indivisibilis"?

Answer: Bonaventura Cavalieri

Cavalieri's "method of indivisibles" states that a geometric plane contains infinitesimally small rectangles, which would allow Cavalieri to find the area of a shape quickly. The book's full name is "Geometria Indivisibilibus Continuorum Nova Quadam Ratione Promota", and was harshly criticized because mathematicians believed Cavalieri's method was absurd.

5. Which mathematician had studied the involute of a circle, and used this knowledge to patent the first pendulum clock?

Answer: Christiaan Huygens

Huygens' work with clocks greatly improved the accuracy of clocks. He also discovered the true shape of the rings of Saturn. Huygens eventually isolated himself in Holland, and continued to study outer space and had even proposed the existence of extraterrestrial beings.

6. Which mathematician, at the age of 18, proved (or to be more precise, reproved) that for every n there is a prime between n and 2n.

Answer: Paul Erdos

This had first been proved by Bertrand in the 1700s, but Erdos' solution is more elegant and thus he has become famously within association with the theorem.

7. Which mathematician had studied binomial coefficients, published a book on it, and had a "triangle" named after him?

Answer: Blaise Pascal

Although Pascal was not the first to study "Pascal's Triangle", this was his most famous work. His studies later helped Sir Isaac Newton discover the binomial theorem.

8. Which mathematician is remembered for his theorem (cos x + i sin x)^n = (cos nx + i sin nx)?

Answer: Abraham de Moivre

(cos x + i sin x) can also be abbreviated to cis x. De Moivre's theorem opened the way for a greater study of complex numbers. Despite his successes in trigonometry and complex numbers, he died in poverty.

9. Which mathematician was the first to factor out (2^67 - 1) using quadratic remainders?

Answer: Frank Nelson Cole

By factoring out that number, Cole was able to disprove Mersenne's perfect number expression: 2^p - 1. It was at a mathematical convention that Cole took his time in multiplying out the factors by hand in order to prove Mersenne wrong.

10. Which mathematician's most famous work is a formula that can be used to find the area of a triangle with just the lengths of the sides?

Answer: Heron

Heron's formula is A^2 = s*(s - a)*(s - b)*(s - c). s is just the sum of the sides' lengths over divided by two.

Source: Author dijonmustard

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