Makers of Mathematics
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Book Overview
Fascinating and highly readable, this book recounts the history of mathematics as revealed in the lives and writings of the most distinguished practitioners of the art: Archimedes, Descartes, Fermat, Pascal, Newton, Leibniz, Euler, Gauss, Hamilton, Einstein, and many more. Author Stuart Hollingdale introduces and explains the roles of these gifted and often colorful figures in the development of mathematics as well as the ways in which their work relates to mathematics as a whole. Although the emphasis in this absorbing survey is primarily biographical, Hollingdale also discusses major historical themes and explains new ideas and techniques. No specialized mathematical knowledge on the part of the reader is assumed. Superbly informative, this volume offers an accessible, interesting guide to one of the pillars of modern science, and to a supremely important aspect of human culture through the ages.
Format:Paperback
Language:English
ISBN:0486450074
ISBN13:9780486450070
Release Date:July 2011
Publisher:Dover Publications
Length:464 Pages
Weight:1.08 lbs.
Dimensions:0.9" x 5.6" x 8.5"
Customer Reviews
3 ratings
Good history of mathematics
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 18 years ago
A very interesting history of mathematics by british author Stuart Hollingdale. The book is arranged in chronological order, with the first chapter dealing with the mathematics of ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia and the last chapter with the latest developments in math. The mathematics of ancient Greece is covered very thoroughly, in particular. Each chapter, with the exception of the first one, takes the work of one mathematician to analyze the mathematics of the period. One can argue with the book here and there (putting Einstein as a mathematician, covering very little of 20th century developments) but all in all this is a good volume. Note: while the book is not overly complex, it is not for the completely uninitiated either, as it supposes some previous knowledge of math to understand it.
For anyone interested in the History of Math
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 22 years ago
I enjoyed this book immensely as it painted the picture of how modern mathematics evolved from ancient times. The author does a great job of bringing you through the issues of time when the theories were forming and providing an understanding of how ancient cultures dealt with math that is otherwise rudimentary today. If you have always enjoyed math (as a hobby or career) you will most likely appreciate the road that has been paved before us by the mathematical giants detailed in the book. For those who may not have much math experience, this book does a decent job at explaining most of the concepts before referring to them. However, if you are merely interested in a good story and lack the appreciation for the mathematical contributions of these great thinkers (as another reviewer has) this book is not for you.
Great!
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 25 years ago
I love the books. Very enjoyable history of mathematics, that is fairly accesible to non-mathematicians.
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