Thus it mysteriously appears: impressions of Laplace’s use of series

Abstract

The history of series in mathematics is studded with the names of the greatest practitioners: Newton, Leibniz, the Bernoullis, Euler, Lagrange, Fourier, Cauchy, Riemann, Weierstrass, Borel, and many others have made important contributions, which have been studied by hystorians. Yet one name, as great as these, is almost always lacking from the historical accounts: Pierre-Simon Laplace (1749–1827). This short essay is an attempt to fill the gap by conveying the principal features of his thought in the area. After surveying briefly his career, the reasons for the neglect are considered. Then some main features of his position are detected (sections II and III), followed by two interesting case studies (sections IV and V).

Whenever I meet in La Place with the words “Thus it plainly appears”, I am sure that hours, and perhaps days, of hard study will alone enable me to discover how it plainly appears.¹

We conclude that he supposed the erudition of his contemporaries would be sufficient to prevent them from ascribing to himself more than was justly due.²