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Show Kemarkable Feats of Mathematical Geniuses. H jlNDIANAPOM8 has n math-FJ.mJ math-FJ.mJ ematlcal genius In the per-I per-I I son of George Hunter, a L, . boy only eight years old, Jj and who accomplishes the most astonishing feats with figures. He calculates Instantly, without the aid of paper and pencil, tho answers to problems which would puzzle even a professor of mathematics using the ordinary methods. Young Hunter's parents arc well to do, nnd his remarkable faculty will bo developed If possible. It may bo that when ho reaches manhood's estate he will lose this gift, ns has been tho case with so many case on records. On the other hand, he may enjoy a successful suc-cessful career, as has been, the case with a few of such prodigies. A writer recalls tho career of Geqge Parker llldder, who was one of the most remarkable mathematical geniuses, ge-niuses, nud who followed up ills precocious pre-cocious youth with a successful manhood. man-hood. llldder was born In 180(1 nt Morton Hnmpstead, In Devonshire, England, where his fatlier carried on n small business ns a stonemason. When only four years old llldder showed n most extraordinary ability for calculation, Ills peculiar talents soon nttraeted general gen-eral attention, nnd his father found It more profitable to travel about tho country nnd exhibit his son ns the "calculating phenomenon" than b- following fol-lowing his humble trade. Tho boy was taken to London nnd his peculiar talents tal-ents were Investigated by the most learned -men of his time, whom bo astonished as-tonished by tho rapidity with which ho answered the most dlllictilt questions. ques-tions. The following question was solved by hi in In forty seconds: "Suppose the bail at tho top of St. Paul's Cathedral tu bo six feet In diameter, what did the gilding cost nt 3&d per square Inch?" The answer, 237 10s Id, wns given beforo be-foro tho examiner hnd tlmo to put the figures of tho example on paper. The following question wns answered in sixty ficconds: Suppose a city to be illuminated with liO'.t'J lumps, each lamp to consume ono pint of oil every four hours In succession, how many gallons would they consumo lu forty years?" The answer contnlns nine figures 11)0,480,050 gallons. Another curious question wns: "Supposo tho earth to consist of 071,000,000 Inhabitants, and suppose they dlo In thirty years four months, how many havo returned to dust slnco the tlmo of Adam, computing comput-ing it to be 2850 years?" This problem offered no dlfrculttes to tho lad, who nonchalantly- rattled oft tho answer In less than thirty seconds. Fortunately for tho boy, ho attracted tho attention of some eminent scholars, who had him educnted at Comberwell, and afterward at Edinburgh, where ho carried off nil tho prizes for tho study of higher mathematics. math-ematics. After his graduation from college ho pursued the profession of engineer and became associated with Hobert Stephenson, and assisted In constructing con-structing the lllrmlnghnm Hallway. Later In llfo ho entered Parliament, nnd muny stories nro told of Didder's wonderful skill In detecting a flaw In somo set of elaborate calculations. He died at Dartmouth In 1878. Another extraordinary child was Zerah Colburn, who was born nt Cnbor, Vt., In 1S0L Ills rcmarkablo genius for abstruse mathematical problems prob-lems wns displayed nt an early age, nnd when he was eight years old ho solved tho most dllllcult problems by the mere operation of ids mind. Asked by nn eminent mathematician to glvo tho squnro of 1100,1)01), ho replied nlmost Instantly, giving tho llgures, 090,008,-000,001, 090,008,-000,001, without any hesitation. Ho observed ob-served that bo produced tho result by multiplying tho square of .17,037 by the squnro of 27. Ho wns then asked to multiply imswer twice by 41), nnd once by 25, a tnsk which ho accomplished In less than two minutes, although the nnswer consisted of seventeen figures. In live seconds ho guvo the cubo root of 113,tKK;i 18,(177, nnd to nil questions of similar nature he succeeded In giving the correct answers. Professors nnd sclentltlc men endeavored to obtain a kuowle-lge of Colburn's methods, but the boy declared be wns unable to explain ex-plain how tho answers came Into Ills mind. He wns Ignorant of tho commonest com-monest rules of arithmetic, nnd could not oven solvo a problem on paper, not even n simple feat In multiplication or division. Colburn's faculty cf computation com-putation left him when he reached manhood, nnd ho died at tho early ago of thlrly-slx. A singular Instance of this curious development of the calculating faculty nnd differing In several respects from Hlddcr and Colburn, Is the case of Jchrdlnh Huxton, who, though he cannot can-not bo called an Infant prodigy, Is ono of the most remarkable of tho mental calculators when names aro n part of tho history of the curious. Huxton was born In 1707 In Elmeston, lu Derbyshire, Derby-shire, where bis father was schoolmaster. schoolmas-ter. Notwithstanding his father's profession, pro-fession, Jcbcdlah's education was neglected. neg-lected. Ho was not even taught to write. It wns not until bo had arrived at manhood's estato that bo showed any aptitude for mental arithmetic. Onco interested lu tho subject, however, how-ever, bis mind developed with nmaxlng rapidity. Ho had a remarkable memory, mem-ory, nnd whilo In the midst of a problem prob-lem ha could desist and resume tho operation again whero he had left off, oven if It wero a year after. A remark-ablo remark-ablo thing about tbo man was that he would nllow two persons to propose different problems at tho samo time, and he would answer each without the least confusion. lie could also talk freely vlillo working out his problems. Buxton died in 1772. Many other examplcsof tbeso "freaks of nature" are known, nnd among them may bo mentioned a negro of Maryland, Mary-land, who, with no education whatever, what-ever, possessed a wonderful gift for solving dllllcult mathematical problems. prob-lems. With the exception of nidder, few of these geniuses have nmounted to anything, nnd ns time went on they cither lost their marvelous power or dlrd before they could mnke It serve some useful purpose. Young Hunter, of Indianapolis, may be nn exception, but the chances nre that In ten or llfteeu years bis mysterious gift will leave him. World's Events. |
