Fibonacci Numbers

Devry University

College of Liberal Arts & Sciences

Pomona, California

Title: Fibonacci Numbers

Course: Math

Instructor: Dr. Mustansir

Albert Navarro

December 5, 2013

Fibonacci Numbers

The Fibonacci numbers came about thanks to Leonardo Pisano; Pisano’s discoveries allowed for faster and easier calculations. The Fibonacci sequence can be found just about anywhere in the world and nature. In the following paragraphs I will talk about the life of Leonardo Pisano better known as Leonardo Fibonacci as well as his mathematical contributions.

Leonardo’s Background

Leonardo Pisano Bigollo better known as Fibonacci was an Italian mathematician. Leonardo was born into an Italian family born around c.1175 ("Oracle Thinkquest", 1999): Guglielmo, his father an Italian merchant directed a trading post in Bugia ("Oracle Thinkquest", 1999). As a young boy Fibonacci learned that the Hindu- Arabic numbering system was far more superior to that of the Roman numerals. Leonardo would travel back and forth to the Mediterranean world to study with the leading Arab mathematicians of the time. Fibonacci’s curiosity led him to want to know how many bunny rabbits would be born in one year. As he worked through the solution he noticed a pattern emerging the number of rabbits couples increased each month were 1,2,3,5,8,13,21,34,55 each number in this series equals the sum of the two previous numbers. These numbers all the way to infinity are what are known as the Fibonacci series.

At the age of thirty- two- years old Leonardo published his recordings and what he had learned. The book became so popular, so popular we still use it in today’s modern times; the book is called Liber-Abacci (Book of Abacus or the Book of Calculating). The book was written to demonstrate to the Italian merchants how easy his new method was, the book was filled with practical examples and worked out examples. According to Encyclopedia Brittanica (2013), Hindu-Arabic numerals were known only...