![[Francois Vieta, Seigneur de la Bigottiere]](ncd05158.jpg "??kb jpg illustration Francois Vieta, Seigneur de la Bigottiere, date unknown, artist unknown; swiped off the Wikipedia web site; please do not write to ask about the image")
(1540-13 December 1603)
Catholic mathematician.
Made the initial application of algebraic transformation to trigonometry.
Popularized reduction as a method of solving equations and the use of letters of the alphabet in algebra to denote quantity.
New Catholic Dictionary
