Upper Bound for Number of Grains of Sand to fill Universe/Historical Note
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Historical Note on Upper Bound for Number of Grains of Sand to fill Universe
As an exercise in his system of notation for denoting very large numbers, Archimedes determines an Upper Bound for Number of Grains of Sand to fill Universe in his book The Sand-Reckoner.
It needs to be emphasised that the actual size of the universe was little understood in those days.
Sources
- 1937: Eric Temple Bell: Men of Mathematics ... (previous) ... (next): Chapter $\text{II}$: Modern Minds in Ancient Bodies
- 1986: David Wells: Curious and Interesting Numbers ... (previous) ... (next): $10^{51}$
- 1992: George F. Simmons: Calculus Gems ... (previous) ... (next): Chapter $\text {A}.5$: Archimedes (ca. $\text {287}$ – $\text {212}$ B.C.)
- 1997: David Wells: Curious and Interesting Numbers (2nd ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): $10^{51}$