Thomas Simpson

Thomas Simpson ( born August 20, 1710 in Market Bosworth, Leicestershire, † May 14, 1761 ) was an English mathematician.

Simpson was the son of a weaver in simple ratios to the world and initially worked as a weaver himself. He taught mathematics at through self-study. In 1725 he moved to Nuneaton, Warwickshire to work there until 1733 as a math teacher, where he married in 1730. In 1733 he had to flee to Derby after he or one of his assistants had scared a girl during an astrology hour by dressed up as devils. Between 1733 and 1736 he moved to London, where in 1736 then his daughter Elizabeth in 1738 and his son Thomas was born.

Since 1743, he taught mathematics at the Royal Military Academy in London.

He is best known for his work on interpolation and numerical integration. Here Simpson's formula is named after him, which is actually Johannes Kepler had set up as Kepler Fassregel in a simpler variant in 1615, and is also based on the findings of Newton. The abstract form of Newton's method, however, comes from him and not to Newton. It also addressed with probability theory and error theory.

Writings

• Treatise of Fluxions (1737), second expanded edition under the title The doctrine and application of fluxions. Vol 1 (1823 ), vol 2 (1750 ).
• The Nature and Laws of Chance (1740 )
• The Doctrine of Annuities and reversion ( 1742)
• Mathematical dissertation on a Variety of Physical and Analytical Subjects ( 1743)
• A Treatise of Algebra ( 1745)
• Elements of Geometry ( 1747 )
• Select Exercises in Mathematics (1752 )
• Miscellaneous Tracts on Some Curious Subjects in Mechanics, Physical Astronomy and Special Mathematics (1757 )