The Lending Science DM and Insurance Science DM teams would like to wish our Muslim friends a spiritually rewarding Ramadan — and easy fasting. Ramadan is the lunar month that begins this week, and continues 30 days, until Eid.

We’d also like to sincerely thank the whole of the Arab world for inventing one of the greatest inventions in the history of all of everything EVER… obviously, we could only be gushing about one thing… mathematics. Whatever did we do before Al Jabra? (That is, “algebra”)

While not entirely and original field of inquiry, the year 820 CE saw the codification and naming of some of the most familiar aspects of algebra, quadratic equations. Muhammad ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi‘s appropriately titled Compendious Book on Calculation by Completion and Balancing (that latter “Completion and Balancing” is what gave algebra its name). Like many genius works of antiquity, the tome meanders through related (and unrelated topics). Before landing at extensive discussion of the laws of inheritance as laid out by Islamic law, it begins with six categorizations of quadratic equations, moves on to spacial and volume calculations with several novel and not-so-novel approximations of π (see Pi Day) as the square root of √10, 22/7, and 62,832/20,000, before moving on to explanation and harmonization of the solar and lunar calendars. Riveting stuff.

A common thread in the computational priorities in ancient times was the obsession with the lunar and solar calendars, and all the celestial bodies, some of which operate on cycles that exceed man’s lifetime, and require multi-century observational record-keeping exercises by multiple generations of scientists, complicated mathematics, and a bit of luck. Before there were rockets and satellites and theories of gravity and lasers and Hubbles and James Webb Space Telescopes… there was only computational mathematics and a burning desire to know what the moon phases would be this time next year. So, this is the rocket science of the 9th century. And, in case you’re curious — it takes 19 years for the lunar cycle to sync up with the solar cycle.

We don’t know what people did back then before algebra, but it sounds as challenging as what we do today: complicated statistical analyses, computation of standard deviations and predictive model-scored deciles to boost the performance of consumer response to advertising messages, optimize KPIs for higher response and profitability, and lower risk and acquisition costs.

If any of that interests you more than stargazing, well… us too. We’re like kindred spirits! We should do lunch. Fill in the form below, so that our people can call your people.