Math History Question

Miscellaneous History
1

Browsing through one of my colleagues math textbooks I came a across a bit of mathematical history that I thought was rather interesting and was hoping someone might offer some more information. It seems that European mathematicians around the 1500’s were likely to keep all their discoveries secret in hopes to win a university appointment. It seems that back then mathematicians would issue challenges to each other of the nature where each has 30 days to answer each others question set forth. A mathematical type of duel. Thus, holding ones discoveries was a type of job security in case someone issued a challenge (can give details of actual cases if you would like)

Now, we can see how such a system would at best slow progress. Though, I assume one could argue that such competition made mathematicians work harder, even though their findings were hidden from the public. Does anyone know how or why such a system began and, why it ended?

2

I saw a lecture Terence Kealey gave at the Property and Freedom society where he noted the same historical finding. The Royal Society was supposed to be the first scientific society to break away from this practice, and openly publish all results immediately, resulting in a new kind of competitive environment, whereby researchers would try to rather get their findings out there as quickly as possible as opposed to writing them in code and keeping them secret.

3

So, those guys should’ve been forced to reveal their “secrets” for the good of society, eh? More seriously, how can we know if those secrets would have been able to be applied at the time in the way you think they would’ve?