Jacob Tawil
Class of 2024, Johns Hopkins University
Robert Recorde was an eminent Welsh physician and mathematician born around 1510 in Tenby, Pembrokeshire, Wales. Recorde made significant contributions to both medicine and mathematics during the 16th century. After pursuing his education at the University of Oxford and later obtaining an M.D. from the University of Cambridge in 1545, Recorde returned to Oxford to teach mathematics publicly. He is most well-known for inventing the equals sign in 1557, along with introducing the plus and minus signs to English speakers.
Recorde had much professional success, even serving as physician to monarchs such as King Edward VI and Queen Mary and holding administrative roles like Controller of the Royal Mint. However, Recorde faced many personal challenges, including being sued for defamation and later arrested for debt after directing a failed initiative to develop silver mines in Wexford, Ireland. He died in the King’s Bench Prison in Southwark in mid-June, 1558. Recorde’s legacy reaches beyond his medical and administrative roles, as he wrote influential works like The Grounde of Artes, the first English language book on algebra, and The Whetstone of Witte, which introduced algebra into Britain with a systematic notation. His only medical work, The Urinal of Physick, provides a comprehensive look at uroscopy and a guide to diagnosing and treating illness by observing urine. This work reflects Recorde’s proficiency as a scholar and practitioner in both medicine and mathematics.
Further Reading:
Johnston, Stephen, “Recorde, Robert”, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, September 23 2004, Oxford University Press, https://doi.org/10.1093/ref:odnb/23241
Williams, Jack, Robert Recorde: Tudor Polymath, Expositor and Practitioner of Computation (London: Springer, 2011)