Nonplussed!: Mathematical Proof of Implausible Ideas - Couverture souple

Havil, Julian

 
9780691148229: Nonplussed!: Mathematical Proof of Implausible Ideas
Couverture souple
ISBN 10 : 0691148228 ISBN 13 : 9780691148229
Editeur : Princeton University Press, 2010

Synopsis

Math--the application of reasonable logic to reasonable assumptions--usually produces reasonable results. But sometimes math generates astonishing paradoxes--conclusions that seem completely unreasonable or just plain impossible but that are nevertheless demonstrably true. Did you know that a losing sports team can become a winning one by adding worse players than its opponents? Or that the thirteenth of the month is more likely to be a Friday than any other day? Or that cones can roll unaided uphill? In Nonplussed!--a delightfully eclectic collection of paradoxes from many different areas of math--popular-math writer Julian Havil reveals the math that shows the truth of these and many other unbelievable ideas.

Nonplussed! pays special attention to problems from probability and statistics, areas where intuition can easily be wrong. These problems include the vagaries of tennis scoring, what can be deduced from tossing a needle, and disadvantageous games that form winning combinations. Other chapters address everything from the historically important Torricelli's Trumpet to the mind-warping implications of objects that live on high dimensions. Readers learn about the colorful history and people associated with many of these problems in addition to their mathematical proofs.

Nonplussed! will appeal to anyone with a calculus background who enjoys popular math books or puzzles.

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À propos de l'auteur

Julian Havil is a former Master at Winchester College, England, where he taught mathematics for more than thirty years. He is the author of Gamma: Exploring Euler's Constant and Impossible?: Surprising Solutions to Counterintuitive Conundrums (both Princeton).

Les informations fournies dans la section « A propos du livre » peuvent faire référence à une autre édition de ce titre.

Éditeur
Princeton University Press
Date d'édition
2010
Langue
anglais
ISBN 10 
0691148228
ISBN 13 
9780691148229
Reliure
Broché
Nombre de pages
216
Coordonnées du fabricant
non disponible
Personne responsable
non disponible

Autres éditions populaires du même titre

9780691120560: Nonplussed: Mathematical Proof Of Implausible Ideas

Edition présentée

ISBN 10 :  0691120560 ISBN 13 :  9780691120560
Editeur : Princeton University Press, 2007
Couverture rigide