NAPIER, John (Napier John)

(1550-1617)
Born in 1550 in Merchiston Castle, near Edinburgh. He studied at the University of Edinburgh. In 1593 published a simple explanation of the whole Revelation (A Plaine Discovery of the Whole Revelation of St. John), the first interpretation of Scripture on the Scots.
Napier is known primarily as the inventor of logarithms, based on establishing correspondence between arithmetic and geometric progressions numerical. In Labor Description astonishing table of logarithms (Mirifici logarithmorum canonis descriptio, 1614) proposed that a scientist first table of logarithms (he also owns, and the term 'log'), but does not have a way of calculating. Explanation was given in his other works, Construction of an amazing table of logarithms (Mirifici logarithmorum canonis constructio), released in 1619, after the death of the author. In 1617, Napier has published another one of his work, Rabdologiyu (Rabdologia - 'account on sticks'), in which he outlined a way to multiply numbers with the help of special bars, subsequently called 'bone Napier'. Participated in the development of various kinds of military equipment (burning-glasses, shells, etc.). He died in Napier Merchiston Castle-April 4, 1617.