Mathematics
has never been a strength of mine. I
barely made it through Algebra in high school.
Today if I can stumble my way through addition, subtraction,
multiplication, division, fractions and percentages I consider myself
fortunate.
On the
other hand my wife is a mathematics whiz.
She has the ability to figure things out in her head with numbers that
is amazing. Needless to say she does the
books in our household.
Shelter Harbor
Press have just released the first its new series of Ponderables books:
Mathematics An Illustrated History Of Numbers, edited by Tom Jackson.
The
oversize hard bound book contains a history of mathematics chronicling the 100
Breakthroughs That Changed History and Who Did What When. Colorful graphs, art,
photos and charts trace mathematics back to its earliest sources and follow the
progression of what many consider more an art than a science.
Numbers
have always blurred the line between imagination and fact. If you ever meet a high level mathematician
you’ll soon realize that they possess endless imagination, a talent for looking
past the obvious and for thinking literally ‘outside the box.’
Even
though I am mathematically challenged I can’t help but be fascinated by the
history of math and those who pioneered its many facets.
Included
in the book are bios of great mathematicians along with a large fold-out poster
of the Timeline History Of Mathematics.
The
Ponderables series of books looks promising, educational and enlightening.