Talk:Cramer's rule

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When did Gabriel Cramer come up with Cramer's Rule?

ANS: Around 1750, two years before his death. He died without giving an explanation of how exactly he came up with the rule. There is some speculation that Colin Maclaurin came up with the same rule in 1729 but there must have been a paper shortage in Scotland because it was never published until after he died.

A search on google for "cramer's rule maclaurin" comes up with several pages discussing who came up with it first. This one (http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3789/is_200110/ai_n8969722) says that Maclaurin published it in 1748, two years before Cramer did, but that Cramer's probably gained popularity due to his superior notation.

[edit] More precise statement

Any chance someone is willing to give a more precise statement of Cramer's rule? As in the following: Let R be a commutative ring, M a finitely generated R-module with generators m_i, and an endomorphism of R-modules. φ determines a matrix

A = (a_ij)

via . Then Adj(A)A=det(A)I, where Adj(A) is the cofactor matrix of A.

[edit] Does the example of comparative statics in econ make any sense?

am I right that there's nothing special about comparative statics, it's just an example of solving a system of linear equations, nothing particularly about cramer's rule. This latest edit says it's of 'further significance', but it doesn't seem to be. --Tristanreid

I don't find that example much useful either. Oleg Alexandrov (talk) 23:52, 17 October 2005 (UTC)

ok, I'm yanking it. Thanks for signing me, by the way. I forgot last time. Tristanreid 02:44, 19 October 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Where did Gaon come from?

Vilna Gaon seems to have come out of left field. I note that the main article on him includes a similar statement without attribution. Does anyone have a reference for this statement? S.N. Hillbrand 20:45, 22 December 2005 (UTC)

Thanks for removing that. Looked like a strange edit. Oleg Alexandrov (talk) 01:25, 23 December 2005 (UTC)

I actually remember it being printed in my algebra book as a possible etymology. I really don't know if there is a credible source for it. I think they might have cast doubt on it themselves. I have no idea how it even got started, but unless I am mistaken, it was in my HBJ algebra book issued by the Los Angeles Unified School District. PhatJew 19:18, 9 March 2006 (UTC)

The reference to the Gaon is a legitimate one that is quoted in many sources. It should be kept as an alternative entymology.