The Oldest Algorithm in the World Plays the Clave
Euclid’s algorithm for computing greatest common divisors, applied to the problem of distributing k drum beats as evenly as possible among n time slots, generates rhythmic patterns that match traditional timelines from West Africa, Cuba, Brazil, Turkey, and the Balkans. An algorithm devised in Alexandria around 300 BCE encodes the rhythmic structure of musical cultures that had no contact with ancient Greek mathematics.