• Journal for History of Mathematics
• /
• v.19 no.4
• /
• pp.63-80
• /
• 2006

Along with natural and algebraic languages, schema is a fundamental component of mathematical language. The principal purpose of this present study is to focus on this point in detail. Schema was already in use during Pythagoras' lifetime for making geometrical inferences. It was no different in the case of Oriental mathematics, where traces have been found from time to time in ancient Chinese documents. In schma an idea is transformed into something conceptual through the use of perceptive images. It's heuristic value lies in that it facilitates problem solution by appealing directly to intuition. Furthermore, introducing schema is very effective from an educational point of view. However we should keep in mind that proof is not replaceable by it. In this study, various schemata will be presented from a diachronic point of view, We will show with emaples from the theory of categories, Feynman's diagram, and argand's plane, that schema is an indispensable tool for constructing new knowledge.