The Great Mathematical Problems[note 1] is a 2013 book by Ian Stewart. It discusses fourteen[1] mathematical problems and is written for laypersons.[2] The book has received positive reviews.
 Softcover edition | |
| Author | Ian Stewart |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Subject | Mathematics |
| Genre | Non-fiction |
| Publisher | Profile Books |
Publication date | March 1, 2013[1] |
| Media type | Print, e-book |
| Pages | 320 pp. |
| ISBN | 1846681995 |
Content
editStewart describes important open or recently closed problems in mathematics:
Reception
editIan Stewart belongs to a very small, very exclusive club of popular science and mathematics writers who are worth reading today.
Kirkus Reviews said Stewart "succeed[ed] in illuminating many but not all of some very difficult ideas", and that the book "will enchant math enthusiasts as well as general readers who pay close attention".[1] Robert Schaefer from the New York Journal of Books described "The Great Mathematical Problems" as "both entertaining and accessible", although later noted that "in the end chapters ... explanations of the conjectures get more complicated".[3]
Fred Bortz gave the book a positive review in The Dallas Morning News, commenting "few authors are better at understanding their readers than the prolific mathematics writer Ian Stewart" and saying that "anyone who has always loved math for its own sake or for the way it provides new perspectives on important real-world phenomena will find hours of brain-teasing and mind-challenging delight in the British professor’s survey of recently answered or still open mathematical questions".[4]
Notes
edit- ^ Also known as Visions of Infinity: The Great Mathematical Problems, Visions of Infinity or The Great Mathematical Problems: Marvels and Mysteries of Mathematics.
References
edit- ^ a b c "VISIONS OF MATHEMATICS". Kirkus Reviews. Kirkus Media. 11 December 2012. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
- ^ "The Great Mathematical Problems: Marvels and Mysteries of Mathematics by Ian Stewart has been published under the auspices of the Dynasty Foundation". Dynasty Foundation. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
- ^ a b Schaefer, Robert. "Visions of Infinity: The Great Mathematical Problems". New York Journal of Books. Lisa Rojany Buccieri. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
- ^ Bortz, Fred (30 March 2013). "Book review: 'Visions of Infinity: The Great Mathematical Problem,' by Ian Stewart". Retrieved 1 January 2015.