Weird Maths
At the Edge of Infinity and Beyond
1st Edition
Published on 1. February 2018
288 pages
978-1-78607-265-8 (ISBN)
Description
Is anything truly random? Does infinity actually exist? Could we ever see into other dimensions?
In this delightful journey of discovery, David Darling and extraordinary child prodigy Agnijo Banerjee draw connections between the cutting edge of modern maths and life as we understand it, delving into the strange - would we like alien music? - and venturing out on quests to consider the existence of free will and the fantastical future of quantum computers. Packed with puzzles and paradoxes, mind-bending concepts and surprising solutions, this is for anyone who wants life's questions answered - even those you never thought to ask.
In this delightful journey of discovery, David Darling and extraordinary child prodigy Agnijo Banerjee draw connections between the cutting edge of modern maths and life as we understand it, delving into the strange - would we like alien music? - and venturing out on quests to consider the existence of free will and the fantastical future of quantum computers. Packed with puzzles and paradoxes, mind-bending concepts and surprising solutions, this is for anyone who wants life's questions answered - even those you never thought to ask.
Reviews / Votes
'Remarkable.' * <i>TLS</i> * 'A glorious trip through some of the wilder regions of the mathematical landscape, explaining why they are important and useful, but mostly revelling in the sheer joy of the unexpected. Highly recommended!' -- Ian Stewart, author of <i>Significant Figures</i> 'Darling and Banerjee take us on a captivating ride through a vast landscape of mathematics, touching on mesmerising topics that include randomness, higher dimensions, alien music, chess, chaos, prime numbers, cicadas, infinity, and more. Read this book and soar.' -- Clifford A. Pickover, author of <i>The Math Book: From Pythagoras to the 57th Dimension</i> 'In this inspired collaboration, a young maths prodigy teams up with a popular science writer to present a fresh view of the world of mathematics. Together they fearlessly tackle some of the most weird and wonderful topics in mathematics today, rightly believing that "if you can't explain something in plain language then you don't properly understand it". Clearly, they understand it.' -- John Stillwell, Professor of Mathematics, University of San Francisco, and author of <i>Elements of Mathematics</i>More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Oxford
United Kingdom
File size
3,33 MB
ISBN-13
978-1-78607-265-8 (9781786072658)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Book
02/2018
Oneworld Publications
€36.08
Article exhausted; check different version
Persons
David Darling is a science writer, astronomer and tutor. He is the author of nearly fifty books, including the bestselling Equations of Eternity. He lives in Dundee, Scotland.
Agnijo Banerjee is one of the world's most outstanding young mathematicians and a former student of Darling's. At the age of thirteen he attained the highest possible score on Mensa's IQ test and in 2018 he came joint first in the International Mathematical Olympiad, becoming the first person from the UK to obtain a perfect score in 24 years. He was born in Kolkata, India, but has spent most of his life in Scotland. He is now continuing his studies at Trinity College, Cambridge.
Agnijo Banerjee is one of the world's most outstanding young mathematicians and a former student of Darling's. At the age of thirteen he attained the highest possible score on Mensa's IQ test and in 2018 he came joint first in the International Mathematical Olympiad, becoming the first person from the UK to obtain a perfect score in 24 years. He was born in Kolkata, India, but has spent most of his life in Scotland. He is now continuing his studies at Trinity College, Cambridge.
Content
- Intro
- Introduction
- A Note to the Reader
- Chapter 1 The Maths Behind the World
- Chapter 2 How to See in 4D
- Chapter 3 Chance Is a Fine Thing
- Chapter 4 Patterns at the Brink of Chaos
- Chapter 5 Turing's Fantastic Machine
- Chapter 6 Music of the Spheres
- Chapter 7 Prime Mysteries
- Chapter 8 Can Chess Be Solved?
- Chapter 9 What Is and What Should Never Be
- Chapter 10 You Can't Get There from Here
- Chapter 11 The Biggest Number of All
- Chapter 12 Bend it, Stretch it, Any Way You Want to
- Chapter 13 God, Gödel, and the Search for Proof
- Acknowledgements
