The term "Bickart points" is often used for the foci of the Steiner circumellipse of a triangle. Who was Bickart, and what was the first publication to use the term?
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2$\begingroup$ As you have doubtless discovered by Googling it, the main information available on the internet, doubtless all copied from one another, is that these foci are "also called" the Bickart points. Wow, you'd think someone before would have felt a little guilty about just slinging that around with no citation …. One author seems to mention finding out the name from Norman Wildberger. Did you ask him? $\endgroup$– LSpiceCommented Jul 7, 2020 at 13:50
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Sur l’hypocycloïde à trois rebroussements (1913) gives an early reference to L. Bickart (Revue de Mathématiques spéciales, 1908).
This reference says M. Bickart, but that "M." stands for "monsieur", the initial is "L."
Here is one paper by L. Bickart on this geometric topic.
I cannot quite recover the circumellipse construction from this paper, but the constructions seem sufficiently similar to support the conclusion that this is the right Bickart.
answered Jul 7, 2020 at 14:25