Austrian Center for Didactics of Computer Algebra

Squaring the Circle and Leonardo´s Vitruvian Man

Abstract:

Leonardo´s famous drawing contains a coded message for the most important mathematical problem in the time of Renaissance. Starting with a pair of square and circle you can construct a new pair of square and circle. We examined the related itertation in the classroom with Derive, Cabri and the TI92. Using these tools (especially the Macro-Function (Cabri) and the Iterates-Function (Derive)) we did a lot of classroom experiments to answer different questions. The most important result is: the sequence of the proportions of areas (square/circle) converges near 100 % !

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