The Annual Hamilton Walk, in association with the Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Maynooth University, will take place during Maths Week Ireland on Monday 16th October starting from Dunsink Observatory. Advance Booking is essential for this event. More information including booking details can be found here.
The walk commemorates Sir William Rowan Hamilton’s famous creation of a strange new number system, called Quaternions, on the banks of the Royal Canal in Dublin on October 16, 1843. Quaternions now play a fundamental role in computer games and animation, special effects in movies, space navigation, physics, engineering and many other areas. The walk will retrace Hamilton’s steps from Dunsink Observatory to Broom Bridge in Cabra where he had his Eureka moment.
Hamilton performed a piece of mathematical graffiti by scratching his quaternion formulas on the canal bridge. In an act of mathematical vandalism, Hamilton opened up a whole new mathematical landscape where mathematicians could now feel free to conceive new algebraic number systems that were not shackled by the rules of ordinary numbers in arithmetic. Hamilton freed algebra from arithmetic and he was called the Liberator of Algebra.
Leave a Comment
Last Updated: 23rd May 2018 by mary
Annual Hamilton Walk – 16th October 2017
Category: Astronomy and Astrophysics Section News & Events, News
Exciting times! twitter.com/Space_Station/…
DIAS's @Luke_Drury hasn't slowed down on retirement. He recently attended an Open Science fair in Porto in his capacity as an @ALLEA_academies board member to introduce some key points on the Plan S project. More here ➡️allea.org/allea-discusse… #DIASdiscovers
🤩 twitter.com/sam_green93/st…
Thanks to @dubfire for their hasty response and saving tonight's open evening. Here they are checking out the telescope with @petertgallagher after all their hard work! 🔥🚒
Tonight is DIAS's last @Histfest event for 2019. Thanks to all who took part! The open night at DIAS Dunsink Observatory is completely booked out! Fear Not! Our Samhain agus Science mini-fest kicks off on the 30 October. Book your free place here: eventbrite.ie/o/dublin-insti…
The competition was commissioned by the @RIAdawson, @TFIupdates and Transport Infrastructure Ireland. #DIASdiscovers
While there is an obvious @DIASDunsink link, there is another #DIAS link to this event. Pictured on the right here you will see @TomRayDIAS with his daughter @Emma_Ray_Artist whose own flash of creativity won the commission in 2018.
What a day yesterday! Amazing autumnal sunshine for not only the Hamilton walk but the official unveiling of the new artwork commemorating William Rowan Hamilton's "eureka" moment at what is now Broombridge luas stop.
Wow! This image from an article published in August is from a group lead by Ruben Fedriani. It is a result of work undertaken while at DIAS is now a featured image on @NatureComms site! It is a striking. Excellent work Ruben and team! #DIASdiscovers twitter.com/NatureComms/st…