A historical perspective on parallel transport: isometric immersions and Foucault precession

This paper contributes to the historical understanding of the developments surrounding the Levi-Civita parallel transport problem, exploring its connections with the local problem of isometric immersions and alternative proposals. Additionally, it highlights one of its remarkable applications: the geometric interpretation of Foucault’s pendulum precession. It also recalls how other geometric explanations of this phenomenon emerged in the context of Berry and Hannay phases.