Mathematics

Enter the magical maze of mathematics and explore the surprising passageways of a fantastical world where logic and imagination converge. For mathematics is a maze--a maze in your head--a maze of ideas, a maze of logic. And that maze in your mind is a powerful tool for understanding an even bigger maze—he maze of cause and effect that we call "the universe." That is its special kind of magic. Real magic. Strange magic. Infinitely fascinating magic.

In this adventure of a book, acclaimed author Ian Stewart leads you swiftly and humorously through the junctions, byways, and secret passages of the magical maze to reveal its beauty, its surprise, and its power. Along the way, he reveals the infinite possibilities that arise from what he calls "the two-way trade between the natural world and the human mind."

On your travels you will encounter number magic--both the stage-act variety and the deeper magic of animals, plants, and the physical world. You will come to understand the amazing pattern-forming abilities of the humble slime mold, the numerology of flowers, and the feeding habits of pigs and panthers. You will discover how to solve puzzles the algorithmic way, the artistic way, and the army way. You will be amazed by the deep connections between the founding of Carthage, soap bubbles, and communications networks. You will discover how to use a toy train set as a computer, and find out why this implies that there are unavoidable limits to mathematics. You will join the controversy over cars and goats, find out the terrible truth about confessions, and win endless bets about birthdays. You will see how a new idea about ferns can lead to a multi-million-dollar computer graphics company, and how Jupiter and Mars can combine forces to hurl cosmic rocks at Earth. And you will never again be able to watch a kitten, a kangaroo, or a Chihuahua without noticing the delightfully rhythmic patterns with which they move their feet.

If you've always loved mathematics, you will find endless delights in the twists and turns of The Magical Maze. If you've always hated mathematics, a trip through this marvelous book will do much to change your mind.

It's the dawn of the Industrial Revolution, and Euclidean geometry has been profoundly influential for centuries. One mystery remains, however: Euclid's fifth postulate has eluded for two thousand years all attempts to prove it. What happens when three nineteenth-century mathematicians realize that there is no way to prove the fifth postulate and that it ought to be discarded—along with everything they'd come to know about geometry? Jason Socrates Bardi shares the dramatic story of the moment when the tangible and easily understood world we live in gave way to the strange, mind-blowing world of relativity, curved space-time, and more.

"Jason Socrates Bardi tells the story of the discovery of non-Euclidian geometry—one of the greatest intellectual advances of all time—with tremendous clarity and verve. I loved this book." —John Horgan, author, The End of Science and Rational Mysticism

"An accessible and engrossing blend of micro-biography, history and mathematics, woven together to reveal a blockbuster discovery." —David Wolman, author of Righting the Mother Tongue and A Left-Hand Turn Around the World

Only one tool of the human mind has the power and versatility to answer so many questions about our world—mathematics. Far from a musty set of equations and proofs, mathematics is a vital and creative way of thinking and seeing. It is the most powerful means we have of exploring our world and how it works, from the darkest depths of the oceans to the faintest glimmers of far-away galaxies, and from the aerodynamics of figure-skating jumps to the shadows of the fourth dimension.

In this captivating companion to the landmark PBS series Life by the Numbers, acclaimed author Keith Devlin reveals the astonishing range of creative and powerful ways in which scientists, artists, athletes, medical researchers, and many others are using mathematics to explore our world and to enhance our lives.

On this exhilarating tour you will explore deep-sea volcanoes with oceanographer Dawn Wright, go behind the scenes of blockbuster movies with special-effects designer Doug Trumbull, and probe the strange lives of viruses with microbiologist Sylvia Spengler. Listen to astronomer Robert Kirshner describe how he is charting the curve of space; discover how biologist Mike Labarbara visualizes the way a Tyrannosaurus rex carried its massive frame; and, along with brain researcher Brad Hatfield, peer into the mind of an Olympic markswoman at the moment she takes a shot. Glimpse a future of wearable computers and silicon "butlers" with computer scientist Pattie Maes, and watch a lilac come to life on screen with "computer botanist" Przemyslaw Prusinkiewicz.

Lavishly illustrated and beautifully written, Life by the Numbers brings mathematical exploration and invention to life through the stories of some of the most creative practitioners of the art. It imparts an appreciation of the ingenuity and the sheer fun of seeing our world through mathematical eyes.

How to make lots of money, keep yourself safe, and even save the world-all by using a little simple math

Forget the dull, boring math you learned in school. This book shows you the powerful things math can do for you, with applications no teacher ever taught you in algebra class. How can you make money off credit card companies? Will driving a hybrid save you money in the long run? How do you know when he or she is ""the one""?

From financial decisions to your education, job, health, and love life, you'll learn how the math you already know can help you get a lot more out of life.

• Gives you fun, practical advice for using math to improve virtually every area of daily life
• Includes straightforward explanations and easy-to-follow examples
• Written by the author of the successful guide, How Math Explains the World

Filled with practical, indispensable guidance you can put to work every day, this book will safeguard your wallet and enrich every aspect of your life. You can count on it!

Does working with numbers often frustrate you? Do you need to brush up on your basic math skills? Do you feel math stands between you and your career goals, or a better grade at school?

Quick Arithmetic, Third Edition is the quickest and easiest way to teach yourself the basic math skills you need to advance on the job or in school. Using cartoons and a clear writing style, this practical guide provides a fresh start for learning or reviewing how to work with whole numbers, fractions, decimals, and percentages. The book's proven self-teaching approach allows you to work at your own pace and learn only the material you need. Previews and objectives at the beginning of each section help you determine your particular needs, while self-tests, practice problems, and a final exam let you measure your progress and reinforce what you've learned.

For anyone who has ever felt intimidated by a page of numbers, Quick Arithmetic, Third Edition has the answers!