Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
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First published 1976 (SND Vol. X, list of scientific terms with Scottish connections).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
IVORY. In phr. Ivory's theorem, in Math., on the correspondences produced by confocal ellipsoids (sometimes called ivorys), a basic proposition in the theory of attraction.
[Formulated in 1809 by James Ivory (1765–1842) of Dundee, Professor of Mathematics at the Royal Military College.]
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"Ivory ". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 18 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/snd00090063>


