More Art Puzzles By Number: From Easy to Mind Bending
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • More Art Puzzles By Number: From Easy to Mind Bending
  • Great Large Print
  • Too Easy
  • Love it
  • Not Mindbending
More Art Puzzles By Number: From Easy to Mind Bending
Kathy Weaver
Manufacturer: Agreka Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0977707245

Book Description

More Art Puzzles by Numbers is the sequel to the most electrifying new kind of puzzle to come along in years. Not only are the puzzles fun and beguiling, with tons of fans in the U.S., they are also serving as a valuable resource to teens. The Utah State Textbook Commission designated this book as "Recommended Student Resource" for Mathematics/Pre-Algebra grade levels 7-12" for its emphasis on indirect reasoning skills. The concept is cleverly simple. You start with an empty grid. The numbers to the side and above tell you "how many" squares to fill in the columns and rows. The trick is that the numbers don't tell you "which" squares to fill in-that's for you to decide through logical reasoning and by operating back and forth between the columns and the rows. Unlike the crossword puzzle, when you have finished one of these "picture logic" puzzles correctly, you've made a picture! Complete instructions are included along with the puzzles ranging from easy to hard. You will find puzzles that will peak the curiosity in kids and adults. This book will give every puzzle fan many gratifying hours of entertainment.

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars More Art Puzzles By Number: From Easy to Mind Bending.......2007-06-27

Very entertaining and absorbing. Great stress reliever and gets the brain really working. A wonderful way to "get away". You feel like you have really accomplished something when you solve the puzzle. Hours and hours of great entertainment.

5 out of 5 stars Great Large Print.......2007-05-16

As a reader of large-print books, I adore Kathy Weaver's puzzles. I never have to dig out my magnifying glass. And the pages of this book do not fall out the way her other book did.

4 out of 5 stars Too Easy.......2007-04-06

I am interested in books for advanced solvers. I am not well, and books like this help me pass the time when I am confined to my house.

5 out of 5 stars Love it.......2007-03-10

Weaver is my fav art puzzle maker because I love the logic challenges, but I do NOT like counting 50 squares or more. Some folks love it, but it's just a chore for me. I like Weaver's pics because they are cute and imaginative and they don't go over 30 squares. I hope she comes up with another book soon, I'll buy it!

2 out of 5 stars Not Mindbending.......2007-03-09

This was an okay book, but more aimed toward the beginner or kids. I started doing the puzzles about half way through the book hoping to get into some harder ones. That never happened. Even the ones at the very end of the book were pretty easy. Nothing remotely close to mindbending.
Recreations in the Theory of Numbers
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • Full of info
  • Full of info, but poorly written.
  • Recreational Mathematics Is Not A Contradiction In Terms
  • A classic
  • Lots of examples, lots of tables, lots of fun
Recreations in the Theory of Numbers
Albert H. Beiler
Manufacturer: Dover Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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  1. Mathematical Recreations and Essays (Dover Books on Mathematical and Word Recreations) Mathematical Recreations and Essays (Dover Books on Mathematical and Word Recreations)
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ASIN: 0486210960

Book Description

Number theory proves to be a virtually inexhaustible source of intriguing puzzle problems — interesting to beginning and advanced readers. Divisors, perfect numbers, the congruences of Gauss, scales of notation, the Pell equation, many other aspects produce ingenious puzzles. Solutions to all problems.

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars Full of info.......2002-07-28

...but poorly written. It's very interesting in a historical sense. For instance, Table 9 shows composite Mersenne's numbers up to n=251, most of them with question marks when a factor wasn't known to be composite or prime, and C when it was known to be composite but the factors weren't known. For instance, 2^101-1 was known to have at least 4 prime factors, but no factors were known. At the time (1964-1966), ENIAC was being used to compute such things. Yesterday, on my lowly Pentium 4, using Mathematica's built-in functions, I factored all the numbers completely in less than 45 minutes of computation time. One of them (2^251-1) took 34 minutes and 7 seconds and another took 5 minutes 10 seconds -- all the rest were very fast. It's amazing how much better the algorithms and computers are, today.

3 out of 5 stars Full of info, but poorly written........2002-07-27

And NOT written in a recreational style, by any means.

5 out of 5 stars Recreational Mathematics Is Not A Contradiction In Terms.......2002-03-30

If you are curious about numbers (as I am), this is one of several books you need to have in your library. It is informative, entertaining, comprehensive and easy to read, even if you are not blessed with a mathematics degree from an institution of higher learning.

This book is well-organized, beginning with topics that are easy to grasp, then going on to more complicated ideas. The contents include such terms as prime numbers, perfect numbers, amicable pairs, sociable numbers, divisors, congruences, cyclical numbers, repunits (a term the author coined) and logarithms. The book reveals many curiosities about common artcles such as squares, triangles and circles. More complex topics such as a resolution of a number into prime factors and Pell equalities are shown in a manner that is informative and easy to comprehend. The grand climax of the book is a stirring discussion of Fermat's Last Theorem.

This volume remains a 'good read' despite the fact that it is almost forty years old. Although much of what it in this book has been superceded over the course of time, this boof is not obsolete. If you have any interest in numbers, buy this book if you do not already possess a copy of it.

5 out of 5 stars A classic.......2002-03-10

This is a great book for math amatuers like myself. Expertly written. Great introduction. Great examples. A must read for anyone interested in learning more about the pure science of number theory.

5 out of 5 stars Lots of examples, lots of tables, lots of fun.......2000-12-27

This book was my first exposure to Number Theory, coming from an engineering background. This book got me hooked. You could almost say the book takes an engineering approach to number theory: Lots of examples, lots of tables but not a lot of rigorous, long proofs. This book is set apart from most textbooks by those facts. You won't find such extensive examples and tables in any textbook (and I have about 50+ texts on Number Theory). Conversly, no self-respesting professor could present so many results without proof. But that's the fun of this book. I recommend this book over "An Adventures Guide to Number Theory" by Richard Friedberg for uninitiated.
The Art of the Infinite: The Pleasures of Mathematics
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • an infinity of infinities
  • Number theory set to poetry
  • An excellent tome... entertaining.
  • Good but really for math buffs
  • Interesting but could be written more clearly
The Art of the Infinite: The Pleasures of Mathematics
Robert Kaplan , and Ellen Kaplan
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 019514743X

Book Description

Robert Kaplan's The Nothing That Is: A Natural History of Zero was an international best-seller, translated into eight languages. The Times called it "elegant, discursive, and littered with quotes and allusions from Aquinas via Gershwin to Woolf" and The Philadelphia Inquirer praised it as "absolutely scintillating." In this delightful new book, Robert Kaplan, writing together with his wife Ellen Kaplan, once again takes us on a witty, literate, and accessible tour of the world of mathematics. Where The Nothing That Is looked at math through the lens of zero, The Art of the Infinite takes infinity, in its countless guises, as a touchstone for understanding mathematical thinking. Tracing a path from Pythagoras, whose great Theorem led inexorably to a discovery that his followers tried in vain to keep secret (the existence of irrational numbers); through Descartes and Leibniz; to the brilliant, haunted Georg Cantor, who proved that infinity can come in different sizes, the Kaplans show how the attempt to grasp the ungraspable embodies the essence of mathematics. The Kaplans guide us through the "Republic of Numbers," where we meet both its upstanding citizens and more shadowy dwellers; and we travel across the plane of geometry into the unlikely realm where parallel lines meet. Along the way, deft character studies of great mathematicians (and equally colorful lesser ones) illustrate the opposed yet intertwined modes of mathematical thinking: the intutionist notion that we discover mathematical truth as it exists, and the formalist belief that math is true because we invent consistent rules for it. "Less than All," wrote William Blake, "cannot satisfy Man." The Art of the Infinite shows us some of the ways that Man has grappled with All, and reveals mathematics as one of the most exhilarating expressions of the human imagination.

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars an infinity of infinities.......2007-06-21

It is said that the invention of zero was a fundamental advance for the art of mathematics. And so it is. But at least there is only one zero! The other end of the scale to nothing, is everything - infinity. I guess that we should have expected there to be more than one infinity - even up to an infinity of them. It's just that 'everything' is so hard to define. The set of everything that is male is very large - infinite probably across time as it marches into the future. So too is the set of everything that is female. It can hardly surprise us that these two infinite sets put together produces a greater infinity.

But what sort of a mind does it take to pare this down to the austere elements of logical and mathematical reasoning - to show that it is in fact so - to prove it? And not just once - but over and over again. It is a fascinating story culminating with Georg Cantor - the possessor of the mind and the will.

Still, it nags away at my mind. What practical use can this insight bring?

5 out of 5 stars Number theory set to poetry.......2005-12-28

Fifty years ago, if you were to randomly select a book from the mathematics section in the library, it most likely would have been uniformly colored grey, or some other neutral/dark hue, with a drab but utilitarian title in the language of professional mathematicians. Well, things certainly have changed. The standard grey hardbacks have given way to covers filled with color, while the utilitarian titles - boring in their simplicity - have given way to poetry and hyperbole that would make a thespian blush.

In days past the Kaplan's book would have been called "introduction to number theory. Now, it's called "The art of the infinite." I'd have called it "number theory set to poetry, with story problems."

I selected this book because I thought it might have something to do with infinity. After leafing through it, though, it was immediately apparent that it covers lots more than just the "infinite." I can imagine conversations between the Kaplans and their publisher. Publishers are fond of telling science/mathematics authors that most people won't buy a book with lots of equations, and that they needed to make the cover snazzier by including a catch word like "infinite," or something like that.

Robert and Ellen Kaplan have written what turns out to be a first-rate book, showing that it's possible to make number theory understandable and very interesting. It's particularly fun the way they make frequent use of mental or mathematical "experiments," to tune "intuition" as a means for solving mathematical problems. While this style may offend or at least annoy pure mathematicians, others will see in their examples key insights into how the human mind works through mathematical problems, and how learn. The Kaplans are both accomplished mathematicians, but they are also excellent teachers.

The authors used geometry and pictures to show how to construct the counting numbers, the set of integers (positive and negative), the rational numbers, the real numbers, and finally complex numbers. The interesting thing about this book is that the reader learns all this stuff while having fun with some of the most interesting mathematical asides you can imagine.

Yes, infinity does enter into the book. Again, the Kaplans do a masterful job of describing the mathematics of sets. It's a common misconception that infinity is a number - many (most?) people don't understand that it's a quality of sets. You will, though, after reading this book.

The book is chuck full of diagrams, and plenty of equations, too. It's an easy book to understand (for the most part) but it's not for intellectual slouches, either. Mostly, I found the explanations to be clear and understandable, with the exception of the chapter that deals with perspective. I was able to glean new concepts from the chapter, but I think I would have been lost, had I not already understood the subject fairly well before I read the book.

When you get to the end, don't stop reading. The Appendix has some of the most interesting and worthwhile reading in the book.

I've criticized other authors for being too poetic with their math books. The Kaplans do it a lot, but they manage to do it in a way that doesn't interfere with understanding the key mathematical concepts.

Needless to say, I highly recommend this book for anyone who enjoys mathematics, and wants to brush up on what numbers mean, how we invented them, and how to have fund with counting - and a whole lot of other stuff.

5 out of 5 stars An excellent tome... entertaining........2005-07-31

This is an excellent tome... entertaining. Written with whit and charm, it gives one pause for thought and contains a lovely subtle humor... which is too bad for the authors as this dooms the book to wide rejection from those who are still in need of redrafting their sixth grade expositions on 'Where The Red Fern Grows'... too bad, too bad. Now, will those of you who are playing in the match this afternoon move your clothes down onto the lower peg immediately after lunch, before you write your letter home, if you're not getting your hair cut, unless you've got a younger brother who is going out this weekend as the guest of another boy, in which case, collect his note before lunch, put it in your letter after you've had your hair cut, and make sure he moves your clothes down onto the lower peg for you... ok?

4 out of 5 stars Good but really for math buffs.......2005-04-29


This book trys to present math to the millions and does a pretty good job. It is simple and sometimes witty but often the literary allusions intrude and the text bogs down in pages of relentless math--lovely if you like it and horrid if you don't. If you already know alot of math you will still probably find the discussions of general math, geometry, projective geometry, and infinite series to be a nice refresher. If you don't know any and don't have a natural talent for it, you will find it very dense or impossible. Being somewhere in the middle I skimmed thru most of it and slowed down when it got interesting. If you have only a little time I would suggest the last chapter 'The Abyss` about Georg Cantor and transfinite arithmetic.

At points they wax philosophical and ask the perennial question: is math is out there in the world or in here in our heads. Why not ask this about art or music or literature or computer programs or philosophy itself? In a very general way math must come from the same place that words and ideas and images come from---our brain evolved to make them and they must in many ways(every way?) reflect the structure of our brains, which reside in our dna which was shaped by natural selection which was shaped by the geology of the earth and the structure of our universe which comes from particle physics which comes from the laws of nature which are just there.

4 out of 5 stars Interesting but could be written more clearly.......2004-12-19

This book covers some very fine topics in math. It attempts to balance mathematical rigor with analogies and interesting historical points. The attempt however is not totally sucessful because the language used is too obscure. The mathematical topics discussed are complex enough by themselves and the additional obscure language makes them that much harder to understand. I would have vastly preferred the use of stright forward English for the discussion. The analogies and historical facts could have been presented separately alongside the main discussion. Nevertheless I enjoyed reading it and will recommend it to others as long as they have a good command of English and are willing to go along with the less than ideal presentation.
Wonders of Numbers: Adventures in Mathematics, Mind, and Meaning
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • I love Mathematics
  • A delightful collection of mathematical puzzles
  • Mind blowing !!
  • More unusual mathematics from a master
  • Zero Substance
Wonders of Numbers: Adventures in Mathematics, Mind, and Meaning
Clifford A. Pickover
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0195157990

Book Description

Who were the five strangest mathematicians in history? What are the ten most interesting numbers? Jam-packed with thought-provoking mathematical mysteries, puzzles, and games, Wonders of Numbers will enchant even the most left-brained of readers. Hosted by the quirky Dr. Googol--who resides on a remote island and occasionally collaborates with Clifford Pickover--Wonders of Numbers focuses on creativity and the delight of discovery. Here is a potpourri of common and unusual number theory problems of varying difficulty--each presented in brief chapters that convey to readers the essence of the problem rather than its extraneous history. Peppered throughout with illustrations that clarify the problems, Wonders of Numbers also includes fascinating "math gossip." How would we use numbers to communicate with aliens? Check out Chapter 30. Did you know that there is a Numerical Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder? You'll find it in Chapter 45. From the beautiful formula of India's most famous mathematician to the Leviathan number so big it makes a trillion look small, Dr. Googol's witty and straightforward approach to numbers will entice students, educators, and scientists alike to pick up a pencil and work a problem.

Customer Reviews:

3 out of 5 stars I love Mathematics.......2005-09-27

I am still reading the book.
It is elementar, but very interesting.

5 out of 5 stars A delightful collection of mathematical puzzles.......2005-07-14

This book contains a delightful collection of mathematical puzzles in the tradition of Martin Gardner. There are Klingon Paths, Hexagonal Cats, Messages from the Stars, and Doughnut Loops. If you liked the puzzles in Pickover's "Alien IQ Test", you will like the puzzles in this book.

The book is not all numbers. There are historical anecdotes and stories about mathematicians told by the author's alter-ego, Dr. Googol. Are all mathematicians insane? The answer is not clear. However, the author describes the five strangest. Did you know that Pythagoras believed that it was sinful to eat beans?

There are a number of interesting top ten lists. As one who thinks that the proper role of mathematics is to solve the problems of the physical world, I was happy to note that Dr. Googol chose equations of physics for six of the ten most important mathematical expressions, e.g. Gauss' law and Newton's law of gravitation. Dr. Googol must have some physicist friends.

This is just one in a series of wonderful books that Dr. Pickover has written. I also recommend "The Science of Aliens", "Time: A Traveler's Guide", and his new book "A Passion for Mathematics".

5 out of 5 stars Mind blowing !!.......2004-07-02

The book provides very valuable information about mathematics.The language is simple and any leyman can understand it well.The book also provides brain teasers to refresh your mind.And DEFINATELY this book will generate your interest in Mathematics.Thanks Clifford Pickover.
KB.

4 out of 5 stars More unusual mathematics from a master.......2004-05-25

Narrated by the outstanding and eccentric mathematician Dr. Francis Google, this book is a collection of unusual mathematics problems, from those involving very large numbers to those defined by applying operations. For example, the Leviathan number (10^666)! is used to demonstrate that it is not necessary to compute a number to learn some of the properties that it has. Sets of numbers such as apocalyptic numbers, those that involve 666, the number of the beast, appear several times. One of my favorites are the Schizophrenic numbers, defined by the formula f(n) = 10 * f(n-1)+n, f(0) = 0, which is a set of integers demonstrating a simple pattern. However, the action starts when the square roots of the numbers are taken. These roots exhibit an unusual, repeated pattern in their digits.
Some incidents of mathematical history that are interesting trivia are also used. The number 365, 365, 365, 365, 365, 365 is supposedly the largest number that was ever squared in the head of a human. Other segments were based on surveys, where people answered questions such as, "Which would have had the greatest impact on the world as we know it today: `If Albert Einstein had lived another twenty years with a clear mind?', `If mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan had lived another twenty years with a clear mind?", If Steven Hawking was not afflicted with Lou Gehrig's disease?'." A ranking of the top eight female mathematicians of all time, a listing of the five greatest scandals in mathematics history, the ten most important unsolved mathematical problems, the ten most influential mathematicians of all time, the ten most influential mathematicians alive today and the ten most difficult areas of mathematics to understand provide additional intellectual fodder.
Every time I read a Pickover book, the number of ideas used as the seeds to generate the text astounds me. He always seems able to come up with new twists on old problems and sometimes new problems that set your brain moving in circular motions as you try to comprehend the consequences of the statements and attempt to follow the logical consequences of the transformations. While some of the best books keep you reading from page to page without stopping, others cause you to read a little, process a lot and then read some more. That is what this book did to me, and I am sure that it will do the same to you.

Published in the recreational mathematics e-mail newsletter, reprinted with permission.

1 out of 5 stars Zero Substance.......2004-03-06

After reading this book (I do not bother reading even a half), many would be thrilled that they now has ten times of stuff about mathematics to talk about on a coffe table, but they should also realize that they know exactly as much mathematics as they had before.
Cake Cutting Algorithms
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • Very good with challenging problems
  • A good book, with clear explanations of content
Cake Cutting Algorithms
Jack Robertson , and William Webb
Manufacturer: A K Peters Ltd
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 1568810768

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars Very good with challenging problems.......2005-02-17

The book assumes no knowledge of advanced mathematics.Rather it teaches some of important concepts of number theory through simple problems like cake cutting,division of real estate etc.Book is very inreresting as it teaches important aspects in informal way rather than complex equations.

5 out of 5 stars A good book, with clear explanations of content.......1999-06-02

This book starts with basic algorithms for dividing things among any number of people with explanations of why they work, then goes on to different topics such as the number of cuts required to divide things fairly. Includes algorithms for just being sure you get your fair share, algorithms that make sure that you are envy-free of what everyone else gets, and for when you have to divide up work that you don't want to do.
Puzzles 101: A Puzzlemaster's Challenge
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • You can see why the author is so highly regarded as a puzzle maker
  • A good collection of addictive puzzlets
Puzzles 101: A Puzzlemaster's Challenge
Nobuyuki Yoshigahara
Manufacturer: A K Peters Ltd
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 156881206X

Book Description

This latest collection of puzzles from the internationally acclaimed puzzlemaster Nob Yoshigahara covers a wide variety of puzzles from physical to visual, conceptual to mathematical.

Solutions are provided in a separate section, which will help novices get on the right track, and will give seasoned aficionados a chance to check their work.

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars You can see why the author is so highly regarded as a puzzle maker.......2006-04-24

Nob Yoshigahara is an internationally known puzzle master and from the 101 puzzles in this book, it is easy to see why he is so highly regarded. Most of the staple genres appear somewhere in the book. Some of those forms are:

*) What is the next number in the sequence?
*) Given a figure made from objects, move a small number to create a different figure.
*) Given a figure, cut it into pieces and rearrange them into another figure.
*) Place numbers into positions in a figure so that arithmetic combinations match a specific pattern.
*) Rearrange numbers so that a pattern forms.

Solutions to all of the puzzles are in a separate section after the puzzles and this will reduce your aggravation, although you should try very hard before you peek at the solution.
I found approximately 20 of the puzzles to be solvable within a minute or two. If you approach them the right way, the solution is obvious. I was able to solve another 20 after several minutes, generally after thinking for a while, putting it away and then coming back to it. Of the remaining sixty, there are about 20 that I don't think I would have ever solved, although the solution in the back of the book was easy to follow. Many of these were dissection problems, which I always seem to have trouble with.
For some of the problems, I don't see how you could solve them without making the appropriate manipulatives, and the author hints when that is the case. Fortunately, they are all quite simple, a few coins or pieces of paper generally suffice. If you like to stimulate your brain cells by solving puzzles, then this book is one you must examine.

4 out of 5 stars A good collection of addictive puzzlets.......2004-04-25

Nob is a revered Japanese puzzlist so the publisher (AK Peters) ought to be commended for giving us the first English translation of his many excellent puzzle books - this was long overdue.

As far as content is concerned, this book has mostly penny&matches and cut-up&reassemble type puzzles - so in a sense,it is a variation on an already known theme.

However, most of the puzzles have a fresh twist which makes them thoroughly engaging -- but quite a few are blood-letting head scratchers!

The book is well illustrated and has a nice introduction by Nob.

Let's hope for more of Nob's puzzle books from AK Peters!
Mathematical Chestnuts from around the World (Dolciani Mathematical Expositions)
Average customer rating: Not rated
    Mathematical Chestnuts from around the World (Dolciani Mathematical Expositions)
    Ross Honsberger
    Manufacturer: The Mathematical Association of America
    ProductGroup: Book
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    ASIN: 0883853302

    Book Description

    Ross Honsberger has compiled another collection of miscellaneous gems from elementary mathematics, this time from sources the world over, and ranging from the latest International Olympiads all the way back to Euclid. Each one casts light on a striking result or a brilliant device and any reader with only a modest mathematical background will appreciate the ingenious solutions that are also presented.
    Adam Spencer's Book of Numbers: A Bizarre and Hilarious Journey from 1 to 100
    Average customer rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    • Not the best example of this sub-genre
    Adam Spencer's Book of Numbers: A Bizarre and Hilarious Journey from 1 to 100
    Adam Spencer
    Manufacturer: Four Walls Eight Windows
    ProductGroup: Book
    Binding: Paperback

    GeneralGeneral | Science | Subjects | Books
    Number TheoryNumber Theory | Pure Mathematics | Mathematics | Science | Subjects | Books
    Number TheoryNumber Theory | Pure Mathematics | Mathematics | Professional Science | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books
    Math GamesMath Games | Puzzles & Games | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
    ASIN: 1568582897

    Book Description

    How many people do you need in a room before there’ll be a birthday in common? Why is 70 weird, and what can we do about it? How can 56 people eat 1 pizza? In 100 bite-size chapters of no more than three pages each, Adam Spencer gives each number, 1 to 100, its place in the limelight. For example, take 65. It’s the constant of a 5 x 5 "magic square" -- a square that contains the numbers 1 to 25, where all the rows and columns and each diagonal add up to 65. Elizabeth Taylor had 65 costume changes in Cleopatra. And sharks can travel up to 65 kilometers per hour (about 40 mph). After reading Adam Spencer's Book of Numbers, readers will never look at numbers the same way again.

    Customer Reviews:

    3 out of 5 stars Not the best example of this sub-genre.......2005-09-08

    Here's a book idea. You're a comedian who also knows a lot of number theory. People are fascinated by numbers--and heaven knows we could all use a chuckle or two. So...Aussie comedian, DJ and math PhD Adam Spencer decided he'd have something to say about all the numbers from 1 to 100, but he'd try to keep it lively and funny and relevant to people's lives with references to the popular culture and such. And he'd throw in some jokes and shore it up with some number puzzles. This would appeal to both the general public and people who love numbers.

    Well, I am sorry to say that I don't think he was entirely successful. First of all the book is not all that funny. (But you might want to judge for yourself.) Second, most of the mathematical stuff is about number theory which is famously that part of mathematics that is the most removed from practical application (and therefore the public interest). In fact, until an offshoot of prime number explorations contributed to data encryption (in credit card numbers and corporate and military messaging, etc.) number theory was proudly the province of the utterly impractical, the purest of pure mathematics. (A nice lesson here is that we can never know when some esoteric endeavor may yield a practical application.)

    Third--and to my mind most important--the information about numbers in this book is in many cases information that is only tangentially or accidentally related to the numbers themselves. For example for the number 44, Spencer tells us that "Drinking 1 cup of tea a day is thought to reduce your risk of major heart attack by up to 44 per cent." The number could just as well have been 43 or some other percent. Or "The highest recorded number of different costumes ever sashayed around a Hollywood movie was 85, by Madonna in Evita." (I don't even think this is correct, but never mind.) In other words, Spencer is writing like he is trying to appeal to the readers of say People Magazine. My guess is that the typical imbiber of People Magazine or its equivalent is not likely to even pick up a book on numbers let alone buy it.

    Fourth, since Spencer has made an obvious attempt at uncovering the cultural significance of the first 100 numbers (and I think that is a fine idea) he really needed to do more research in that area so that he could come up with something more significant than say "20/20 is the name of a Beach Boys album" for inclusion in his remarks about the number 20. If Spencer had spent more time looking at the historical and cultural significance of numbers, he would have had to weight his remarks heavily toward the lower numbers since the human significance of especially the single digit numbers greatly outweighs that of the larger numbers. Indeed an entire book could be written about the number 3 for example. And I would say that in the beginning there was the one which became through duality the two, which became with three the many, and then "the ten thousand things." There is so much that Spencer could have told us about the number one, the IDEA of the number one, of oneness as opposed to something more or less than oneness, but instead he tells us that "Some things only happen once. Snails have sex only once in their lives."

    Indeed, I think Spencer missed a great opportunity here. If he had focused on the deep human meaning (and experience with) number and on the philosophic and emotional ideas associated with numbers, his sidebars into the pop culture might have been funnier. To do this he would have needed to do more than just Google the numbers or go to pop culture Web sites such as
    the Get Smart home page where he found (and listed for our edification) "the 51 phones so far discovered on Get Smart," e.g., the "address book phone," the "doughnut phone," the "perfume spray phone," etc.

    There are many books on number that attempt to show us the human side of numbers and even books that make experiences with numbers funny. Some of the best are written by John Allen Paulos who really is funny and very much worth reading.

    Finally, Spencer includes a kind of mathematical puzzle or "Quiz Question" for the reader to answer for most of the 100 numbers. He gives the answers in the back. Questions (or tasks) range from "What is the name of the first official episode of South Park?" to "What are the next 3 square pyramidal numbers after 55?" (he does explain what a pyramidal number is) to "Using only +, - or x, join the digits 1-9 to make a total of 100..."

    I even think that including some hard core numerology (anathema to mathematicians of course, but beloved by New Age types) along with the number theory and the pop culture references would have improved this book. At least it would have broaden the context. To his credit Spencer does include some religious aspects of numbers, for example he writes, "Among Indian gods, Brahma had 4 heads to symbolize the 4 directions of the world, while Shiva has 4 arms with which he destroys and recreates the world in his dance."

    I think there is a readership for this book (after all I read it, although I didn't attempt to answer the questions--other constraints in life being what they are), but I think such a readership is small and rather exclusive. His ideal reader is someone who loves numbers, trivia, TV culture (South Park, Homer Simpson, Seinfeld, etc.) and who has a lot of time for exactly that. How about an independently wealthy, mathematically-inclined couch potato?
    Figuring: The joy of numbers
    Average customer rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    • Very simple, yet very deep...
    Figuring: The joy of numbers
    Shakuntala Devi
    Manufacturer: Harper & Row
    ProductGroup: Book
    Binding: Unknown Binding

    ArithmeticArithmetic | Popular & Elementary | Mathematics | Science | Subjects | Books
    MathematicsMathematics | Professional Science | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books | Applied | Chaos & Systems | Geometry & Topology | Mathematical Analysis | Mathematical Physics | Number Systems | Pure Mathematics | Transformations | Trigonometry
    ASIN: 0060110694

    Customer Reviews:

    4 out of 5 stars Very simple, yet very deep..........2003-11-27

    Although the whole book is excellent, the multiplication chapter is the crowning achievement. Shakuntala teaches you how to cross multiply any two numbers in a very simple, straightforward way that is easy to learn and easy to do. And if you already know how to do Chisanbop (Fingermath), you will have a very powerful tool to do large multiplication problems without paper or pencil. She also does a ton of good stuff with all the other basic arithmatical operations. An great book that should be part of anyone's math library.
    Magic House of Numbers.
    Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    • What A Memory!
    Magic House of Numbers.
    Irving Adler
    Manufacturer: HarperCollins
    ProductGroup: Book
    Binding: Library Binding

    MathMath | Science, Nature & How It Works | Children's Books | Subjects | Books | Advanced | Algebra | Arithmetic | Fiction | Fractions | General | Geometry
    GeneralGeneral | Games | Sports & Activities | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
    ASIN: 0381999866

    Customer Reviews:

    5 out of 5 stars What A Memory!.......2003-08-29

    I remember this book *well* from my elementary school days. I wore my brother's copy to pieces and had to buy a second one. Card tricks, games, puzzles (including instructions for building your own Chinese Ring Puzzle, whose quickest solution is the Gray-code sequence of binary numbers), all ways to impress your friends based on math. Unlike the Elkin Park reader, I would give this book to *every single child* in elementary school. I can't believe it's out of print... maybe the two of us should buy the rights.

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