Click on a thumbnail to go to Google Books.
Loading... Mathematics: The Man-Made Universe (1963)by Sherman K. Stein
None Loading...
Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. Wow. What a find. It’s a weird perusal of elementary mathematics. The first chapter introduces number theory by the odd device of having you see if you can measure one-ounce potatoes using various integer-ounced weights and a scale, This is to build up to modulo math. It also covers Egyptian rationals, tiling, infinite sets, probability, and graph theory. It’s just weird and nice. Excellent if you’re just a simple mathophile. ( ) no reviews | add a review
Anyone can appreciate the beauty, depth, and vitality of mathematics with the help of this highly readable text, specially developed from a college course designed to appeal to students in a variety of fields. Readers with little mathematical background are exposed to a broad range of subjects chosen from number theory, topology, set theory, geometry, algebra, and analysis. Starting with a survey of questions on weight, the text discusses the primes, the fundamental theorem of arithmetic, rationals and irrationals, tiling, tiling and electricity, probability, infinite sets, and many other topics. Each subject illustrates a significant idea and lends itself easily to experiments and problems. Useful appendices offer an overview of the basic ideas of arithmetic, the rudiments of algebra, suggestions on teaching mathematics, and much more, including answers and comments for selected exercises. No library descriptions found. |
Current DiscussionsNonePopular covers
Google Books — Loading... RatingAverage:
Is this you?Become a LibraryThing Author. |