But there’s a slight problem: Abu Ja’far was a newcomer. He lived from 780 to 850 AD. The origins of algebra precede his birth by 2,500 years — in ancient Babylonia, Egypt and Athens.

Lincoln City's new home kit honours a Victorian mathematician whose work is in every computer and smartphone. George Boole, who was born in the city in 1815, invented Boolean logic - a system that ...