Blaise pascal

Blaise Pascal (19 June 1623 – 19 August 1662) was a French mathematician, physicist, inventor, writer and Catholic theologian. He was a child prodigy who was educated by his father, a tax collector in Rouen. Pascal's earliest work was in the natural and applied sciences where he made important contributions to the study of fluids, and clarified the concepts of pressure and vacuum by generalizing the work of Evangelista Torricelli. Pascal also wrote in defense of the scientific method.

Early life and education

Pascal was born in Clermont-Ferrand, which is in France's Auvergne region. He lost his mother, Antoinette Begon, at the age of three. His father, Étienne Pascal (1588–1651), who also had an interest in science and mathematics, was a local judge and member of the "Noblesse de Robe". Pascal had two sisters, the younger Jacqueline Pascal (1625–1661), and the elder Gilberte Pascal (1620–1687). In 1631, five years after the death of his wife, Étienne Pascal moved with his children to Paris.

Contributions to mathematics

Pascal's most influential mathematical work was his Treatise on the Arithmetical Triangle, which he wrote at the age of 16. In this work, Pascal described a convenient tabular presentation for binomial coefficients, now known as the Pascal's triangle. The triangle was later named after him, and he used it to study the properties of binomial coefficients.

Contributions to physics

Pascal made several important contributions to the field of physics, most notably in his studies of fluid dynamics. He formulated what is now known as Pascal's law (or Pascal's principle), which describes how changes in pressure at any point in an enclosed fluid are transmitted uniformly in all directions.

Pascal's Wager

In addition to his work in mathematics and physics, Pascal is also known for his contribution to the philosophy of religion. Pascal's Wager is his most famous philosophical work, and it argues that belief in God is rational because it is the best bet.

Death and legacy

Pascal died in Paris at the age of 39, he left a formidable legacy in the fields of mathematics, physics, and literature. His thoughts and letters, especially his work on religion known as Pensées, had a significant influence on posthumous philosophical thought.