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Cargill Gilston Knott (June 30, 1856—October 26, 1922) was born on June 30, 1856 at Penicuik, Scotland. He was a pioneer in seismological research, working in Japan 1883 – 91. His writings display a broad interest in knowledge. Knott was a student and collaborator of Peter Guthrie Tait and later his biographer.As such he was familiar with quaternion algebra. When the tight constraints of a single linear algebra began to be felt in the 1890s and revisionists began publishing, Knott contributed the pivotal article "Recent Innovations in Vector Theory".As M.J. Crowe describes in his book (pp. 200-5), this paper set straight wayward theorists that expected to find associativity in systems like hyperbolic quaternions. Knott wrote: June 30 is the 181st day of the year (182nd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 184 days remaining. ...
1856 was a leap year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ...
October 26 is the 299th day of the year (300th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 66 days remaining. ...
1922 (MCMXXII) was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ...
Penicuik is a burgh in Midlothian, Scotland, lying on the west bank of the River North Esk. ...
Royal motto: Nemo me impune lacessit (English: No one provokes me with impunity) Scotlands location within the United Kingdom Languages English, Gaelic, Scots Capital Edinburgh Largest city Glasgow First Minister Jack McConnell Area - Total - % water Ranked 2nd UK 78,782 km² 1. ...
Seismology (from the Greek seismos = earthquake and logos = word) is the scientific study of earthquakes and the movement of waves through the Earth. ...
Peter Tait Peter Guthrie Tait (April 28, 1831 - July 4, 1901) was a Scottish mathematical physicist. ...
In mathematics, the quaternions are a non-commutative extension of the complex numbers. ...
Linear algebra is the branch of mathematics concerned with the study of vectors, vector spaces (also called linear spaces), linear transformations, and systems of linear equations in finite dimensions. ...
In mathematics, associativity is a property that a binary operation can have. ...
To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...
- [T]he assumption that the square of a unit vector is positive unity leads to an algebra whose characteristic quantities are non-associative.
Evidently Knott overlooked the existence of the ring of coquaternions. In abstract algebra, a coquaternion is an idea put forward by James Cockle in 1849. ...
For a textbook on quaternions, lecturers and students relied on Tait and Kelland's Introduction to Quaternions which had editions in 1873 and 1882.It fell to C.G. Knott to prepare a third edition in 1904.By then the Universal Algebra of Alfred North Whitehead (1898) presumed some grounding in quaternions as students encountered matrix algebra. In Knott's introduction to his textbook edition he says "Analytically the quaternion is now known to take its place in the general theory of complex numbers and continuous groups,...".Thus he was aware of the diversity to be encountered in modern mathematical structures, and that quaternions stand as a milestone on the way to others. Alfred North Whitehead, OM (February 15, 1861 – December 30, 1947) was a British mathematician who evolved into a philosopher. ...
In mathematics, a Lie group is an analytic real or complex manifold that is also a group such that the group operations multiplication and inversion are analytic maps. ...
In mathematics, a structure on a set is some additional mathematical objects that, loosely speaking, attach to the set, making it easier to visualize or work with. ...
Knott took an active social role in his community including Sunday school teaching and church affairs.He helped to found the Edinburgh Mathematical Society. When he died October 26, 1922, in mid-stride, seemingly at the height of his powers, it is apparent that the Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh experienced some distress at his loss. As Whittaker wrote, they "morn the loss of one who for many years had been as General Secretary, the centre of their corporate activity." The Edinburgh Mathematical Society is the leading mathematical society in Scotland. ...
The Royal Society of Edinburghs Building on the corner of George St. ...
See also
The o-yatoi gaikokujin or oyatoi gaikokujin (お雇い外国人 — hired foreigners, foreign employees) were foreign specialists, engineers, teachers, mercenaries and more, hired to assist in the modernization of Japan. ...
Sir James Alfred Ewing (March 27, 1855 - January 7, 1935) was a British physicist and engineer, best known for his work on the magnetic properties of metals and, in particular, for his discovery of, and coinage of the word, hysteresis. ...
Arthur Schuster (September 12 1851 - October 17 1934 a versatile physicist known for his work in spectroscopy, electrochemistry, optics, X-radiography and the application of harmonic analysis to physics. ...
References - K.E. Bullen (1973) "Knott, Cargill Gilston" in Dictionary of Scientific Biography, C.C. Gillespie editor, published by American Council of Learned Societies.
- M.J. Crowe (1967) History of Vector Analysis, esp. pp. 200-5 .
- C.G. Knott (1893) "Recent innovations in vector theory" Proceedings of the Royal Society of Edinburgh 9:212-37.Synopsis in Nature 47:590-3.
- E.T. Whittaker (1922) "Cargill Gilston Knott" (obituary) Proceedings of the Royal Society of Edinburgh 43:237 – 48. Includes a substantial but partial bibliography.
The American Council of Learned Societies, founded in 1919, is a private non-profit federation of sixty-eight scholarly organizations. ...
External link Penicuik Community Development Trust essay on C.G. Knott and ties to Japan |
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