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R. J. Boscovich's work on probability

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Abstract

A description of Boscovich's (1711–1787) method of adjusting arc measurements is presented and its further history, including the incorporation of his method in the theory of linear programming, is traced in §1. A special feature of this section is a description of a connection, discovered by C. G. J. Jacobi, between least squares and one of the previous methods of adjusting observations.

Two manuscripts of Boscovich are considered in §2. In one, he studied the stochastic behavior of the sum of several random quantities each having a particular discrete uniform distribution. Set in a context of the theory of errors, this undated manuscript, if written before 1756, is the first work where probability is applied to the theory of errors. The second manuscript describes the practical side of the lotto di Roma.

In §3, Boscovich's reasoning on randomness in a physical context is noticed and, as a sideline, a quotation from Maupertuis is given to show that, as regards determinism, he (as also Boscovich) is the precursor of Laplace.

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    O. B. Sheynin

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Communicated by A. P. Youshkevitch

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Sheynin, O.B. R. J. Boscovich's work on probability. Arch. Hist. Exact Sci. 9, 306–324 (1973). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00348366

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