NonEuclidean Geometry T MacHighway（非欧几里得的几何学T MacHighway）.pdfVIP

Non-Euclidean Geometry HE APPEARANCE on the mathematical scene a century and a half ago of non-Euclidean geome- tries was accompanied by considerable disbelief Tand shock . The existence of such geometries is now easily explained in a few sentences and will easily be understood . Any mathematical theory such as arithmetic , geometry, algebra , topology , etc. , can be presented as an axiomatic scheme wherein consequences are deduced sys- tematically and logically from the axioms . Such a logico-de- ductive scheme may be compared to a game and the Euclid c. BOO B.C . axioms of the scheme to the rules of the game . Anyone who plays games knows that one can invent variations on given games and the consequences will be different . A non-Euclidean geometry is a geometry that is played with axioms that are different from those of Euclid . Of course , this simple explanation violates the historical order. It borrows from a philosophy of mathematics which came about precisely as a result of the discovery of such geometries. For a fuller understanding of the matter , it is necessary to see what happened chronologically . Since the Greeks , geometry has had a dual aspect . It is claimed to be an accurate description of the space in which we live and it is also an intellectual discipline , a deductive structure. These two aspects are now viewed as separate , but this was not always the case . The geometry of Euclid was based on a number of axioms and postulates of which we quote the first five postulates . (The distinction between the words axiom and postulate is fuzzy. Modern mathematics uses the words almost inter- changeably.) 1. A