A Wealth of Numbers : : An Anthology of 500 Years of Popular Mathematics Writing / / ed. by Benjamin Wardhaugh.

• HerausgeberIn: Wardhaugh, Benjamin,
• Place / Publishing House: Princeton, NJ : : Princeton University Press, , [2012]; ©2012
• Year of Publication: 2012
• Edition: Course Book
• Language: English
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (392 p.) :; 39 halftones. 19 line illus.
• Other title: Frontmatter --; Contents --; Preface --; 1. "Sports and Pastimes, Done by Number": Mathematical Tricks, Mathematical Games --; 2. "Much Necessary for All States of Men": From Arithmetic to Algebra --; 3. "A Goodly Struggle": Problems, Puzzles, and Challenges --; 4. "Drawyng, Measuring and Proporcion": Geometry and Trigonometry --; 5. Maps, Monsters, and Riddles: The Worlds of Mathematical Popularization --; 6. "To Ease and Expedite the Work": Mathematical Instruments and How to Use Them --; 7. "How Fine a Mind": Mathematicians Past --; 8. "By Plain and Practical Rules": Mathematics at Work --; 9. "The Speedier Expedition of Their Learning": Thoughts on Teaching and Learning Mathematics --; 10. "So Fundamentally Useful a Science": Reflections on Mathematics and Its Place in the World --; 11. The Mathematicians Who Never Were: Fiction and Humor --; Index
• Format: Mode of access: Internet via World Wide Web.
• ISBN: 9781400841981
• DOI: 10.1515/9781400841981
• Access: restricted access
• Hierarchical level: Monograph
• Statement of Responsibility: ed. by Benjamin Wardhaugh.

Despite what we may sometimes imagine, popular mathematics writing didn't begin with Martin Gardner. In fact, it has a rich tradition stretching back hundreds of years. This entertaining and enlightening anthology--the first of its kind--gathers nearly one hundred fascinating selections from the past 500 years of popular math writing, bringing to life a little-known side of math history. Ranging from the late fifteenth to the late twentieth century, and drawing from books, newspapers, magazines, and websites, A Wealth of Numbers includes recreational, classroom, and work mathematics; mathematical histories and biographies; accounts of higher mathematics; explanations of mathematical instruments; discussions of how math should be taught and learned; reflections on the place of math in the world; and math in fiction and humor. Featuring many tricks, games, problems, and puzzles, as well as much history and trivia, the selections include a sixteenth-century guide to making a horizontal sundial; "Newton for the Ladies" (1739); Leonhard Euler on the idea of velocity (1760); "Mathematical Toys" (1785); a poetic version of the rule of three (1792); "Lotteries and Mountebanks" (1801); Lewis Carroll on the game of logic (1887); "Maps and Mazes" (1892); "Einstein's Real Achievement" (1921); "Riddles in Mathematics" (1945); "New Math for Parents" (1966); and "PC Astronomy" (1997). Organized by thematic chapters, each selection is placed in context by a brief introduction. A unique window into the hidden history of popular mathematics, A Wealth of Numbers will provide many hours of fun and learning to anyone who loves popular mathematics and science.Some images inside the book are unavailable due to digital copyright restrictions.