BERNOULLI, Jacob.

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Ars conjectandi, opus posthumum. Accedit tractatus de seriebus infinitis, Et Epistola Gallicè scripta de ludo pilae reticularis. First edition of the first systematic treatment of probability theory, the source of the law of large numbers, binomial distribution, and Bernoulli numbers. The Ars Conjectandi was the first work to suggest that probability could be applied in civil, moral, and economic matters, and it remains the foundation of much modern practice in such fields as insurance and statistics.Jacob Bernoulli (1655-1705) was the first of the famed Bernoulli family to study mathematics: Johann (1667-1748) was his brother while Nicolaus (1687-1759) and Daniel (1700-1782) were his nephews. Nicolaus revised his uncle's manuscripts for this publication and provided his own two-page preface.The Bernoulli numbers in the Ars Conjectandi inspired the first published computer programme, as devised by Ada Lovelace in 1843. Looking to demonstrate the potential of Babbage's analytical engine, Lovelace wrote an algorithm with which the machine could calculate the Bernoulli sequence, each generated recursively from previous values. The algorithm was published in Taylor's Scientific Memoirs in August 1843.Amusingly, the final section includes several comments on jeu de paume - a ball game having much in common with modern tennis and very little in common with the rest of the work.

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