In October 1684 the German philosopher and mathematician Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz published in the journal Acta Eruditorum a six-page paper, Nova methodus pro maximis et minimis, the first published account of differential calculus, introducing the notation of dy/dx and the integral sign that is still used. Newton had developed his own version of calculus in the 1660s but had not published it. A bitter priority dispute followed, in which the Royal Society, under Newton's presidency, found in favour of Newton in 1713. Historians now agree that both discovered it independently, and Leibniz's notation proved more convenient.
Before and after
- 21 March 1684Discovery of Dione
- 21 March 1684Discovery of Tethys
- 5 April 1684Birth of Catherine I of Russia
- from 25 April 1684 to 26 January 1699Morean War
- October 1684Leibniz publishes the first paper on calculus
- 1685Construction of Ashmolean Museum
- 23 February 1685Birth of George Frideric Handel
- 21 March 1685Birth of Johann Sebastian Bach
- 1 October 1685Birth of Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor
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The era
This moment belongs to the Early modern world (1500 CE to 1760 CE), voyages, printing and new ideas. You can also browse everything in the 17th century.