Descartes René

Des·cartes

 (dā-kärt′), René 1596-1650.

French mathematician, philosopher, and scientist who is considered the father of analytic geometry and the founder of modern rationalism. His main works, Meditations on First Philosophy (1641) and Principles of Philosophy (1644), include the famous dictum "I think, therefore I am."

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Des·cartes

(dā-kärt′), René 1596-1650.

French mathematician and philosopher. He determined that the position of a point can be defined by coordinates, a discovery that laid the foundation for analytic geometry.

The American Heritage® Student Science Dictionary, Second Edition. Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.