Timarida

Timarida (c. 4th-3rd century BCE) was a Greek Pythagorean philosopher and mathematician. Little is known about her life, but she is notable for being one of the few female Pythagorean philosophers whose work is documented, albeit indirectly.

Timarida is primarily known through Iamblichus' In Nicomachi arithmeticam introductionem, a commentary on Nicomachus of Gerasa's Introduction to Arithmetic. In this work, Iamblichus mentions a system of simultaneous linear equations proposed by Timarida.

Timarida's contribution lies in her analysis of systems of linear equations. She considered a system where there were n unknowns (let's call them x1, x2,... xn) and n-1 equations. Each equation expressed the same unknown (e.g., x1) as a linear combination of the other unknowns. Timarida then gave a rule for finding a unique solution to such a system, expressing the value of each unknown in terms of the given constants in the equations. While the exact nature of her solution is debated amongst historians, it represents an early contribution to the study of algebraic structures and solution techniques.

Her work highlights the continued intellectual activity within the Pythagorean school during the Hellenistic period. Although the specifics of her proofs and methods remain fragmented, her surviving fragment underscores the significant, though often overlooked, role of women in ancient mathematics and philosophy.