Wonders beyond numbers : a brief history of all things mathematical

Wonders beyond numbers A brief history of all things mathematical

Johnny Ball

Book - 2017

Johnny Ball has been a well-loved name in mathematics for many years. Wonders Beyond Numbers is his magnum opus, and his first book for more than ten years. It is nothing less than the history of mathematics; he describes it as 'a summation of my career as an enthusiast for mathematics'. It will help spark (or re-spark) the reader's love of maths in its many facets. The scope of the book is breathtaking. Running in something approaching chronological order, it shows that every breakthrough in maths represents a single step forward, resting on the work of others, and it brings to life the importance of numbers, shapes and patterns in the world around us.

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Location Call Number   Status
2nd Floor 510.9/Ball Checked In
Subjects
Mathematics > History.
Published
London, UK : Bloomsbury Sigma [2017]
Language
English
Main Author
Johnny Ball (author)
Physical Description
480 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (some color), maps (some color) ; 23 cm
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (pages 469-470) and index.
ISBN
9781472939999
  • Preface: Mathematics means everything to me...
  • Wow Factor Mathematical Index Explained
  • Introduction: Russian Sums in an English Pub, Circa 1946
  • Chapter 1. The Most Ancient Mathematical Legend
  • Chapter 2. The First Two Great Mathematicians
  • Chapter 3. The Great Age of Grecian Geeks
  • Chapter 4. Archimedes - the Greatest Greek of Them All
  • Chapter 5. The Glory That Was Alexandria
  • Chapter 6. Total Eclipse of the Greeks
  • Chapter 7. Maths Origins, Far and Wide
  • Chapter 8. Mathematics Was Never a Religion
  • Chapter 9. Discovering the Unknown World
  • Chapter 10. The Huge Awakening and New Age of Learning
  • Chapter 11. The New Age of Mathematical Discovery
  • Chapter 12. How to Calculate Anything and Everything
  • Chapter 13. A Mathematician With Gravitas
  • Chapter 14. The Simple Mathematics That Underpins Science
  • Chapter 15. The Many Tentacles of Mathematics
  • Wow Factor Mathematical Index
  • Bibliography
  • Image credits
  • Index
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review

Ball, a British comedian and pop-math celebrity, charms in this lively, accessible history of mathematics. Relating anecdotes and historical points with equal enthusiasm, Ball begins his work in the ancient world with descriptions of Egyptian papyri showing how to calculate the amount of stone needed to build a pyramid and clay tablets from Sumer and Babylon recording everyday business transactions. Ancient Greeks such as Pythagoras, with his work on music theory and geometry, and Archimedes, of the "eureka" moment and array of siege weapons, come to life in Ball's account. Stories about astronomer Tycho Brahe's prosthetic nose, Leonardo da Vinci's restless inventiveness, and Isaac Newton's petty feud with rival scientist Robert Hooke reveal personal details about people who are often just names in a textbook. Ball's book brims with other oddball facts: for example, Abraham Lincoln, Albert Einstein, and Ada Augusta Byron (Countess of Lovelace and the "world's first computer programmer") were all diehard fans of Euclid's Elements. Adelard of Bath, a 12th-century English monk, traveled the Middle East in disguise to learn Arabian mathematics; Florence Nightingale invented pie charts. Ball also explores math contributions from ancient China, India, and Central America. Excellent as an introduction to the field, this is a brisk, well-rounded history of mathematics and its practitioners. (Dec.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

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