Mathematics and the Imagination

by James Roy Newman and Edward Kasner

Book Overview

You don't have to love math to enjoy a hand of cards, a night at the casino, or a puzzle. But your pleasure and prowess at games, gambling, and other numerically related pursuits can be heightened with this entertaining volume, in which the authors offer a fascinating view of some of the lesser-known and more imaginative aspects of mathematics.
A brief and breezy explanation of the new language of mathematics precedes a smorgasbord of such thought-provoking...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0486417034
• ISBN13: 9780486417035
• Release Date: March 2001
• Publisher: Dover Publications
• Length: 400 Pages
• Weight: 0.96 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.4" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

mathematical must read

this book is more than 50 years old, but it still provides valuable insight for any math-oriented high school student and especially so for those students who plan for careers in mathematics or any of the sciences.

Philosophy of Mathematices

The book provides a logical and entertaining explanation of the principals of mathematics and their development.

Math Puzzles That Challenges the Brain

I am thoroughly enjoying the challenges to my brain that I am finding in this book. it was well worth the price I paid

Indulge your enjoyment of mathematics and expand your mind

My school teacher gave me this book to read when I was 13 years old, based on the interest I showed in Mathematics that went beyond the curriculum at school. In many ways it was way beyond my comprehension at the time, but little did I know that it would have such a lasting effect on me. Reading about concepts of infinity, that you could only describe to a fellow teenager as "different sizes of infinity", I realized that there really is a philosophy of mathematics that transcends all other subjects and that there is also an art to working with the subject. I can't recommend this book enough, and I never did give it back to my teacher!

Mathematics and the Imagination

This book came to me by chance.Instantly got my attention.It is written in such a way,that makes interesant to travel through different chapters.In each one you have the mathematical theme mixed with stories , mathematicians histories and puzzles.You learn about people with the greatest imagination.Their personality and a lot of other things,that make you enjoy the reading,no matter if you love mathematics or you have hated it all the time.I've enjoyed specially the chapter about Mathematical Analysis,with the story about rivalry between the egocentric Newton and the humble Leibnitz. This book is the opportunity to learn that mathematics are not the boring thing we have learned at school.