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Circa 1545, an Italian mathematician by the name of Girolamo Cardano, solved what seemed to be an impossible cubic equation. By solving this equation he further attributed to the acceptance of imaginary numbers. "To early mathematicians, imaginary numbers were seen in such forms as the simple equation used today x = +/- [the square root of]-1." (Nahin, 1998, p. 14). However, they were still seen as being useless. In 1572, Rafael Bombelli brought imaginary numbers to a whole new perspective. In his mathematical dissertation Algebra, he showed that the roots of negative numbers can be utilized. To solve for certain types of equations such as the square root of -7, a new number needed to be invented. This new number would be called i. Furthermore, the square of i is -1. These early mathematicians realized that multiplying positive and negative numbers by i would create a whole new number system. .
In 1673, a French mathematician introduced the official name for numbers with negative squares. Rene Descartes coined the term imaginary numbers for all numbers with negative squares. Born on March 31, 1596, in the heart of France; Descartes was the second of two sons and one daughter. At the age of eight, he began to study at the Jesuit School at La Fleche. After studying there for eight years, he left school and moved to Paris. While in Paris, he reconnected with an old friend named Mersenne. Together, they devoted the next two years to the study of mathematics. While Descartes heart was with math, he decided to join the army in 1617. However, he realized that he did not like being in the army and would much rather pursue a career in mathematics. Despite that desire, he remained in the army to please his family. Although, at his leisure he continued to study math, especially analytical geometry as well as studying philosophy. In the spring of 1621, he resigned from his position in the army and during the next five years he immersed himself in mathematics.
