Here's Looking at Euclid
eBook - ePub

Here's Looking at Euclid

A Surprising Excursion Through the Astonishing World of Math

  1. 336 pages
  2. English
  3. ePUB (mobile friendly)
  4. Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub

Here's Looking at Euclid

A Surprising Excursion Through the Astonishing World of Math

About this book

Too often math gets a bad rap, characterized as dry and difficult. But, Alex Bellos says, "math can be inspiring and brilliantly creative. Mathematical thought is one of the great achievements of the human race, and arguably the foundation of all human progress. The world of mathematics is a remarkable place."Bellos has traveled all around the globe and has plunged into history to uncover fascinating stories of mathematical achievement, from the breakthroughs of Euclid, the greatest mathematician of all time, to the creations of the Zen master of origami, one of the hottest areas of mathematical work today. Taking us into the wilds of the Amazon, he tells the story of a tribe there who can count only to five and reports on the latest findings about the math instinct—including the revelation that ants can actually count how many steps they've taken. Journeying to the Bay of Bengal, he interviews a Hindu sage about the brilliant mathematical insights of the Buddha, while in Japan he visits the godfather of Sudoku and introduces the brainteasing delights of mathematical games.Exploring the mysteries of randomness, he explains why it is impossible for our iPods to truly randomly select songs. In probing the many intrigues of that most beloved of numbers, pi, he visits with two brothers so obsessed with the elusive number that they built a supercomputer in their Manhattan apartment to study it. Throughout, the journey is enhanced with a wealth of intriguing illustrations, such as of the clever puzzles known as tangrams and the crochet creation of an American math professor who suddenly realized one day that she could knit a representation of higher dimensional space that no one had been able to visualize. Whether writing about how algebra solved Swedish traffic problems, visiting the Mental Calculation World Cup to disclose the secrets of lightning calculation, or exploring the links between pineapples and beautiful teeth, Bellos is a wonderfully engaging guide who never fails to delight even as he edifies. Here's Looking at Euclid is a rare gem that brings the beauty of math to life.

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Yes, you can access Here's Looking at Euclid by Alex Bellos in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in Mathematics & Mathematics Essays. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.

Information

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Title Page
  3. Contents
  4. Preface
  5. Chapter Zero: A Head for Numbers
  6. Chapter One: The Counter Culture
  7. Chapter Two: Behold!
  8. Chapter Three: Something about Nothing
  9. Chapter Four: Life of Pi
  10. Chapter Five: The X-Factor
  11. Chapter Six: Playtime
  12. Chapter Seven: Secrets of Succession
  13. Chapter Eight: Gold Finger
  14. Chapter Nine: Chance is a Fine Thing
  15. Chapter Ten: Situation Normal
  16. Chapter Eleven: The End of the Line
  17. Bibliography
  18. Acknowledgments
  19. Permissions and Credits
  20. Index
  21. About the Author