The ovals in the Excerpta Mathematica and the origins of Descartes’ method of normals

AbstractThe only occurrence of Descartes’ method of normals before La Géométrie (1637) is to be found in the Excerpta Mathematica. These mathematical fragments, published posthumously among others works in 1701, and dated by Tannery before 1629, deal with curves used in dioptrics which Descartes called ovals. I study in detail two of the texts on ovals together with the related texts in La Géométrie in order to shed light on the geometrical origins of Descartes’ method of normals