The familiar x, y, z and many mathematical symbols are missing. Instead, they are replaced by some strange symbols, including A, B, B, D, Zichou, Yinmao... There are not even plus or minus signs! Not to mention the integral symbol ∫, the differential symbol dx or the logarithmic symbol ln!
The sin and cos that I was so familiar with are all gone!
At first glance, it is really difficult! The sincerity is like a pile of ghostly drawings... Those who didn't know it thought they were holding a mysterious alchemy book.
Li Yu studied for a long time before he saw the clue.
He knew the translator of this book: Mr. Li Shanlan.
Familiar mathematical terms such as "function", "integral", "differential", "algebra", "coordinates", "tangent" and "axis" that we usually use were all translated by him first.
Probably considering the acceptance ability of the Chinese people, Li Shanlan did not directly introduce Arabic numerals and English letters. He adopted a compromise method: the Arabic numerals were replaced by the Chinese "one, two, three, four"; and the 26 English letters were represented by the heavenly stems and earthly branches, namely "A, B, C, D". There are 22 in total, plus "heaven, earth, people, and things", making up 26.
There is also the integral symbol "∫", which uses the radical "禳" of the word "product"; the differential symbol dx is naturally the radical "彳" of the word "微".
To give the simplest example, ∫abxdx=ab∫xdx, using the method invented by Li Shanlan, this formula is written as: He Jia Yi Tian Ji Tian = A B He Tian Ji Tian.
Li Yu also discovered that the numerator and denominator of the Qing Dynasty were actually written backwards! The top is the denominator and the bottom is the numerator! I also seem to understand why it should be read as one-half, because people's writing habits at that time were from top to bottom and from right to left.
There is another point that makes Li Yu feel very awkward: the plus sign in the book is shaped like a capital "T", and the "T" is reversed to be a minus sign.
Hey, if you have read the mathematics textbooks of the Qing Dynasty, you must suddenly feel that the mathematics textbooks in your hands are much more friendly and kind...
After figuring out the rules, Li Yu finally understood the book. The Book of Heaven instantly became a novel. The mathematical knowledge involved in the book was really too simple for him.
While he was studying with gusto, the footsteps of two people were heard outside the door.
Here came Fan Xiren and Zhu Xianwen, both of whom were elected officials of the Qing Dynasty. Fan Xiren was also the 32nd grandson of Fan Zhongyan.
Zhu Xianwen was older than Fan Xiren, but Fan Xiren came from a distinguished family. Five years ago (1897), he and his father passed the same examination, and the imperial court awarded him a gold plaque for "father and son share the same subject." He was very famous!
Zhu Xianwen, on the other hand, entered the Imperial College on the recommendation of the local government. He is also a so-called "Bagong" student. Although the status of a "Bagong" student is no worse than that of a Juren student, those who actually passed the exam have a tougher waist, so Zhu Xianwen behaved very politely towards Fan Xiren. Quite polite.
Zhu Xianwen said: "Ren Qing (Fan Xiren's nickname) came to Tongwen Hall so early, does he still want to learn Western mathematics?"
Fan Xiren said: "Yes, I studied in the self-improvement school of my mentor Xiang Shuai for several years in the early years. Now I have just learned the so-called differential calculus and integral calculus. Unfortunately, the foreign guns have messed up the rhythm."
Xiangshuai is Zhang Zhidong.
Fan Xiren's words were quite angry, and he did not seem to have the fear and fear that ordinary people have towards foreigners. He must have been influenced by Zhang Zhidong.
Zhu Xianwen sighed and said: "I also spent more than three years studying foreign languages, but subjects such as mathematics, physics, and chemistry always felt too profound. I always wanted to confirm it with hundreds of schools of thought, but I couldn't find the right method. If only I were as young as you!"
Zhu Xianwen is about to turn 30. He has worked hard to learn foreign language for several years, and it is really difficult for him to learn to solve equations, the three laws of mechanics, and acids, alkalis, and salts from scratch.
Fan Xiren is young and energetic, but he doesn't think so: "I heard that Prince Qing and Rong Zhongtang are both studying Western learning now. They are much older than Brother Xianwen."
Prince Qing Yikuang is now in charge of the Prime Minister's Affairs Office, while Ronglu is the head military minister, and is the most powerful person in the Qing Dynasty.
Zhu Xianwen smiled and said: "Foreigners just occupied the capital two years ago. I heard that the Dragon Seat has been occupied by many big-headed soldiers. Now the Queen Mother hates foreigners very much. Prince Chuqing and Rongzhongtang are still thinking of finding a foreigner to teach them. I haven’t dared to invite you to my house until now.”
"Queen Mother..." Fan Xiren hesitated. The invasion of the Eight-Nation Allied Forces really frightened the sixty-five-year-old old lady.
"The Queen Mother will eventually understand, let's not mention these things! Brother Xianwen, in short, you must learn these Western things, they are really wonderful!"
"Of course I understand that. It's so mysterious that it makes me scratch my head and give me a headache!"
Fan Xiren said: "You can show off the energy you used to learn the Doctrine of the Mean by hanging beams and stabbing buttocks. You will definitely be fine."
Zhu Xianwen said: "I did do this, but I can't figure out why it's just an arrangement of a few numbers and what roots are required. It's really baffling."
"That's because you haven't learned enough and you can't do it by yourself. The school should recover as soon as possible."
While the two were talking, they walked into the library and saw Li Yu in the corner. They just thought he was a handyman and didn't pay attention.
Fan Xiren picked up a book from the shelf where English classics were stored. After thinking about it, he put it down and walked to the Chinese translation bookshelf.
After rummaging for a while, he said, "Hey, why is the calculus booklet missing?"
"You mean this?" Li Yu raised the Qing Dynasty calculus book in his hand.
Fan Xiren discovered that the cover of the book in his hand was indeed calculus, and took it, "You..."
Li Yu shrugged: "I'm a librarian!"
Fan Xiren nodded, and walked to the desk by the window with Zhu Xianwen. He spread out a piece of paper and said to Zhu Xianwen: "Everyone knows that the West has a strong military. The reason why their cannons can shoot so accurately is because of mathematical calculations and measurements. , the teacher from Ziqiang School once said that to study ballistics, you must understand mathematics and calculus."
"I didn't expect Ren Qing to delve into the theory of sex!"
"You must have thought about throwing the cannonballs at their heads!"
As Fan Xiren spoke, he picked up his pen and started writing, while Zhu Xianwen was helping him grind the ink beside him, looking very interested.
Fan Xiren is indeed proficient in elementary mathematics, physics and chemistry, and has put a lot of effort into the Ziqiang School founded by Zhang Zhidong in Wuhan.
By the way, this Self-Strengthening School is the predecessor of Wuhan University, and he can be said to be the earliest alumnus!
After a while, Fan Xiren copied down several questions in the book and then performed calculations to solve them. But soon, his pen stopped, and he frowned and thought hard.
Zhu Xianwen next to him didn't understand much of the title and could only stare.
Li Yu glanced over from the side and saw at a glance that it was the most basic calculation of definite integrals, which was the integral of function 2x-1 from 0 to 3.
Of course, the title is still written with a bunch of special expressions, which is indeed quite bluffing at first glance.
But the actual difficulty is really very low. Li Yu said casually: "The answer is 6!"
