Explaining an Untidy Variant Algorithm in the Rhind Mathematical Papyrus

Abstract

Problem 43 of the Rhind mathematical papyrus deserves careful consideration, in spite of errors in the presentation of the data and in the initial calculations. It shows a variant algorithm to calculate the capacity of a cylindrical silo. This paper shows how the algorithm could be derived from the main procedure, applying typical Egyptian multipliers.

Keywords

Egyptian mathematics Egyptian algorithms Hieratic mathematical texts

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