How Lewis Carroll's Dodgson condensation method computes determinants
By
tzury
Properly proved. Has structure, has flavour, has a point.
Summary
Charles Dodgson (Lewis Carroll) invented a method for calculating determinants called Dodgson condensation, which simplifies matrix computation by repeatedly condensing a matrix into smaller ones using 2×2 determinants. The method was designed for hand calculation but also has practical applications for machine computation.
Key quotes
· 3 pulledCharles Dodgson, better known by his pen name Lewis Carroll, discovered a method of calculating determinants now known variously as the method of contractants, Dodgson condensation, or simply condensation.
The method was devised for ease of computation by hand, but it has features that make it a practical method for computation by machine.
The basic idea is to repeatedly condense a matrix, replacing it by a matrix with one less row and one less column.
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