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I don't know how many times my husband called me "geek" and "nerd" as I chuckled my way through the different mathematicians (especially Cardano). I have always been good at math, and had made it through Calculus 3 before reading Journey, and yet I still learned so much about basic mathematical concepts from this outstanding book. It did not take me long to realize that my teacher had made a terrible choice in texts. I recommend this book to all math students and math lovers. And worse, it is dry and dull. I am a senior in college, majoring in Mathematics Education.
The book required for my class ended up being Math Through the Ages. On top of that, I actually ENJOYED reading Journey. Last semester, I had to take a Math History class. Journey, on the other hand, was an extremely entertaining telling of the history of mathematics. I think it would be a great addition to a high school math student's education as well. Before I started the class, I read Journey Through Genius (I chewed through it on my off-time).
Ages is terribly disjointed and redundant.
Great read, just enough math to keep me interested, just enough story to keep everyone else interested.
Anyone who wants to understand the way that mathematics really fits into our universe should give this book a try. Each chapter does a fabulous job of bringing to life the mathematicians and their times. I remember glossing over some of the proofs when I was in college, but when I came back to them later I was genuinely impressed. I have used this book as a supplementary text as a high school teacher, and though my students could not follow the proofs, they enjoyed reading the stories (advanced high school students could probably follow them).
This text was used in a History of Mathematics class that I took. It is arguably one of the best books about mathematics, that includes mathematic, that is out there. The writing is great, the choices of mathematicians is fairly diverse, and the math itself is the main feature. It was one of the few books that had an enormous impact on my life.
Readers who have a basic background in mathematics should be able to follow most of the proofs with patience. (I would highly recommend this for any history of math class and as a supplementary text for appropriate classes. For the first time I saw the way that mathematics directly influenced and impacted human beings, society and history at large. Even more telling, the climax of each chapter is a mathematical proof that the author leads you through.
There are no dry mathematical theorems. I had little knowledge about Cicero or Leibniz.
It is a little digression and slows you down; but you learn much more. So, I usually google and read about them.
This book is an amazing journey through the centuries of human struggle to enhance the language of mathematics in order to understand the nature. This lucidly written book inspires to study more about the subject and number of polymaths it refers to.Note on how to read: The book refers to many great human minds, throughout.
Similarly, a theorem or topic of interest, briefly discussed in epilogue of each chapter, can be studied in more detail, as you go along. It sheds light on the human story behind evolving of mathematics.
Rather, these theorems and proofs are written in a way that fascinates and inspires the reader.
4). chs. The latter is discussed here at some length, though no indication of its relation, if any, to the former is provided. How exactly does it go beyond Euclid's "tame" result. 7 and 8 are pretty original); the historical narrative is basically just a compilation of the standard anecdotes (often tangentially related at best to the mathematics discussed). I shall offer some minor points of criticism, but only because the praise that the book deserves would be too repetitive. Archimedes' work on the circle is surely related to his work on the sphere (if only conceptually). Durham, being a slave to the current canon, is happy with this test and does not provide any additional evidence or arguments for his claim.
There is one serious illustration of this: Archimedes on the circle (ch. This is a good book. 90) since "the importance of this ratio had been recognized long before Archimedes" (p. 106). Why is Archimedes' result "bold" and "great" enough to warrant inclusion here.
This is great shame for anyone who is not willing to salute the reigning flag for the sake of it. 90) having to do with areas, since Euclid's "tame" result provides precisely that. Since the canon in silent on this matter, so is Dunham, even though critical readers will all be asking this question. 90) such as that of circumference to diameter and "two-dimensional constants" (p. We read that "Archimedes' bold proposition easily implied Euclid's relatively tame result that the areas of two circles are in the same ratio as the squares upon their diameters" (p. Nor can the answer be found in a link between "one-dimesional constants" (p. First we should note that the originality lies in the mathematics (esp.
It can hardly be "the critical link between circumference and circular area" (p. I suggest that "bold" and "tame" are euphemisms for "taught today" and "not taught today" respectively. My main problem with this book is that Dunham is too uncritical and faithful to the canon: where the canon is silent, so is Dunham, no matter how glaring the omission may be. 96).
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