Pitici, Mircea (editor)

Princeton. 2011. November 2011. Princeton University Press. 1st American Edition. Very Good in Wrappers. 9780691153155. 15 halftones. 5 1/2 x 8 1/2. 350 pages. paperback. . keywords: Popular Mathematics. FROM THE PUBLISHER - THE YEAR'S FINEST WRITING on math FROM AROUND THE WORLD. Praise for The Best Writing on Mathematics 2010: ‘A delight to read. This is a fine volume with lots of terrific articles that are as enticing as they are varied. The sum total is simply great.' - Barry Mazur, Harvard University. Foreword by Freeman Dyson. This anthology brings together the year's finest mathematics writing from around the world. Featuring promising new voices alongside some of the foremost names in the field, The Best Writing on Mathematics 2011 makes available to a wide audience many articles not easily found anywhere else - and you don't need to be a mathematician to enjoy them. These writings offer surprising insights into the nature, meaning, and practice of mathematics today. They delve into the history, philosophy, teaching, and everyday occurrences of math, and take readers behind the scenes of today's hottest mathematical debates. Here Philip Davis discusses the ubiquity of mathematics in today's world, from enabling technology to redefining standards of evidence; Doris Schattschneider identifies some of the mathematical inspirations of M. C. Escher's art; Jordan Ellenberg describes compressed sensing, a mathematical field that is reshaping the way people use large sets of data; Carl Bialik reports on the mirage of round numbers in public perceptions of benchmarks; and much, much more. In addition to presenting the year's most memorable writings on mathematics, this must-have anthology includes a foreword by esteemed physicist and mathematician Freeman Dyson. This book belongs on the shelf of anyone interested in where math has taken us - and where it is headed. inventory #38140 ISBN: 9780691153155.