In 1903, Marie and Pierre Curie were awarded half the Nobel Prize in Physics. The citation was, in recognition of the extraordinary services they have rendered by their joint researches on the radiation phenomena discovered by Professor Henri Becquerel..
Elementary algebra is the most basic form of algebra. 1  It is taught to students who are presumed to have no knowledge of mathematics beyond the basic principles of arithmetic. In arithmetic, only numbers and their arithmetical operations (such as +, â, Ã, Ã·) occur.
Two key features of algebra as we understand the word today are: 1. Reasoning about numbers by recognizing patterns across numbers; 2. Solving a problem by introducing a term for an unknown and then, starting with what is known, reasoning to determine its value. We first see the emergence of both features of algebra in the mathematics of ancient Babylonia, around 2,000 BCE. Several hundred of the many thousands of Babylonianâs cuneiform-inscribed clay tablets that have been found are devoted to mathematics.