Abstract
THE strict theory of geometrical proportion is difficult, and, with few exceptions, elementary students are quite unable to understand it. Opinions differ as to the compromise that is best suited for school teaching, and suggestions on this topic deserve careful consideration. Mr. Smith bases his method on the variation of two geometrical quantities; it is supposed that they vanish together and that any given increment of the one is associated with a fixed increment in the other; or, as he puts it, “when two variables change in such a way that equal changes in the one are accompanied always by equal changes in the other.” A theory of proportion which starts from this idea is necessarily imperfect, and ignores the most troublesome part of the subject; but it will probably serve very well as a provisional compromise. At any rate, Mr. Smith's book deserves a trial.
The First Principles of Ratio and Proportion and their Application to Geometry.
By H. W. Croome Smith Pp. iv + 32. (London: Macmillan and Co., Ltd.) Price 1s.
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The First Principles of Ratio and Proportion and their Application to Geometry . Nature 67, 173 (1902). https://doi.org/10.1038/067173c0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/067173c0