While I’m a dullard in Mathematics–never went beyond high school stuff–I don’t let it bias me although I should admit that I’m jealous of people who are good in it. The mention of Calculus chills my bones and algebra gives me nightmares–not to mention analytical geometry about which I have no clue. However, I like to read about Mathematics for it holds several fascinating tales. Here’s one, for instance:

Our ancestors, when they discovered elementary counting, could count up to ten and not beyond. That’s because, they could use their fingers, and the fingers on both hands taken together number 10. As their intelligence grew, so did their ability to count. They devised a system of using pebbles to count beyond ten.

And the Latin term for the word pebble happens to be Calculus; (from this word is derived the English verb, to calculate).

Isn’t it ironical that the term that originally signified the most elementary kind of arithmetic, over time, became associated with one of the more complex processes of mathematics?