392 years ago, the English mathematician and clergyman William Oughtred introduced the multiplication sign ✕ for the first time. via @fermatslibrary.
Oughtred was the first to use logarithmic scales and sliding by one another to perform direct multiplication and division. He is credited with inventing the slide rule in about 1622. He also introduced the abbreviations "sin" and "cos" for the sine and cosine functions. via @wikipedia
