Visions of infinity : the great mathematical problems
(Book)
Author
Status
General Shelving - 3rd Floor
QA93 .S745 2013
1 available
QA93 .S745 2013
1 available
Description
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Copies
Location | Call Number | Status |
---|---|---|
General Shelving - 3rd Floor | QA93 .S745 2013 | On Shelf |
More Details
Format
Book
Physical Desc
x, 340 pages : illustrations ; 25 cm
Language
English
Notes
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Description
It is one of the wonders of mathematics that, for every problem mathematicians solve, another awaits to perplex and galvanize them. Some of these problems are new, while others have puzzled and bewitched thinkers across the ages. Such challenges offer a tantalizing glimpse of the field's unlimited potential, and keep mathematicians looking toward the horizons of intellectual possibility. In this book the author, a mathematician, provides an overview of the most formidable problems mathematicians have vanquished, and those that vex them still. He explains why these problems exist, what drives mathematicians to solve them, and why their efforts matter in the context of science as a whole. The three-century effort to prove Fermat's last theorem, first posited in 1630, and finally solved by Andrew Wiles in 1995, led to the creation of algebraic number theory and complex analysis. The Poincare conjecture, which was cracked in 2002 by the eccentric genius Grigori Perelman, has become fundamental to mathematicians' understanding of three-dimensional shapes. But while mathematicians have made enormous advances in recent years, some problems continue to baffle us. Indeed, the Riemann hypothesis, which the author refers to as the "Holy Grail of pure mathematics," and the P/NP problem, which straddles mathematics and computer science, could easily remain unproved for another hundred years. An approachable and illuminating history of mathematics as told through fourteen of its greatest problems, this book reveals how mathematicians the world over are rising to the challenges set by their predecessors, and how the enigmas of the past inevitably surrender to the powerful techniques of the present. -- From publisher's website.
Description
A history of mathematics as told through foureen of its greatest problems explains why mathematical problems exist, what drives mathematicians to solve them, and why their efforts matter in the context of science as a whole.
Local note
SACFinal081324
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Citations
APA Citation, 7th Edition (style guide)
Stewart, I. (2013). Visions of infinity: the great mathematical problems . Basic Books.
Chicago / Turabian - Author Date Citation, 17th Edition (style guide)Stewart, Ian, 1945-. 2013. Visions of Infinity: The Great Mathematical Problems. New York: Basic Books.
Chicago / Turabian - Humanities (Notes and Bibliography) Citation, 17th Edition (style guide)Stewart, Ian, 1945-. Visions of Infinity: The Great Mathematical Problems New York: Basic Books, 2013.
Harvard Citation (style guide)Stewart, I. (2013). Visions of infinity: the great mathematical problems. New York: Basic Books.
MLA Citation, 9th Edition (style guide)Stewart, Ian. Visions of Infinity: The Great Mathematical Problems Basic Books, 2013.
Note! Citations contain only title, author, edition, publisher, and year published. Citations should be used as a guideline and should be double checked for accuracy. Citation formats are based on standards as of August 2021.
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