Blaise Pascal was a 17th century French philosopher and scientist who made important contributions to maths, science, and philosophy. While he was still a teenager, Pascal became one of only two people who had developed and constructed a working mechanical calculator. As a mathematician, Pascal developed two separate fields of math-projective geometry, and probability theory. This probability theory was born out of Pascal’s study of gambling problems, and had an important impact on the development of modern day economics. In projective geometry, he developed what became known as Pascal’s triangle, in which the sums of successive numbers built on themselves to form the numerical row beneath. Pascal’s scientific theories were important to understanding the properties and volume of solids using cycloids. Pascal was also an expert in various languages, and a well-versed religious philosopher.
