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Problems from Another Time

Individual problems from throughout mathematics history, as well as articles that include problem sets for students.

Small Fish
There is a fish whose body weighs 8 ounces. How much does the whole fish weigh?
Sum of Squares
There are two numbers which are to each other as 5 and 6 and the sum of their squares is 2196. What are the numbers?
Pearls of Wisdom
The third part of a necklace of pearls, broken in a lover's quarrel, fell to the ground...
Farmer's Best Deal
How many calves, goats and pigs did the farmer buy?
Traveling Men
Two men starting from the same point begin walking in different directions. Their rates of travel are in the ratio 7:3.
Logarithms: The Early History of a Familiar Function - Introduction
The authors recount the 'great tale' of Napier's and Burgi's parallel development of logarithms and urge you to use it in class.
Landscaping
A person has a circular yard that is 150 ft. in diameter, and wishes a walk of equal width made round it within the fence...
Woodcutter
A woodcutter starts to fell a tree 4 feet in diameter, and cuts half way through. One face of the cut is horizontal, and the other face is inclined to the horizontal at an angle of 45 degrees. Find the volume of the wood cut out.
Round Pond in Rectangular Garden
A round pond sits in a rectangular garden. Its center is inaccessible; however, you know the distances from each corner of the garden to the circumference of the pond: 60, 52, 28, and 40 yards. What is the radius of the pond?
Peano on Wronskians: A Translation - Additional References in the Articles
How a translation of Peano's counterexample to the 'theorem' that a zero Wronskian implies linear dependence can help your differential equations students

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