Mathematician:Jost Bürgi

Mathematician

Swiss clockmaker, maker of astronomical instruments and mathematician most famous for publishing a book on logarithms in 1620.

Believed to have invented his own version of logarithms as early as $1588$, but as he failed to publish, John Napier received the credit for the invention.

Nationality

Swiss

History

• Born: 28 February 1552 in Lichtensteig, Toggenburg (now in St. Gallen), Switzerland
• Died: 31 January 1632 in Kassel, Hesse-Kassel, Holy Roman Empire (now Germany)

Publications

• Canon Sinuum, a supposedly highly accurate table of sines, since lost
• 1620: Arithmetische und Geometrische Progress Tabulen

Also known as

Also known as Joost or Jobst, and by the Latinized surname Burgius or Byrgius.

Sources

• John J. O'Connor and Edmund F. Robertson: "Jost Bürgi": MacTutor History of Mathematics archive

• 2008: Ian Stewart: Taming the Infinite ... (previous) ... (next): Chapter $5$: Eternal Triangles: Base ten logarithms