Magnificent mistakes in mathematics / Alfred S. Posamentier, Ingmar Lehmann.
Material type: TextPublisher: Amherst, New York : Prometheus Books, 2013Description: 296 pages : illustrations ; 24 cmContent type:- text
- unmediated
- volume
- 1616147474 (hardback)
- 9781616147471 (hardback)
Item type | Home library | Collection | Call number | Materials specified | Status | Date due | Barcode | Item holds | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Adult Book | Main Library | NonFiction | 510 P855 | Available | 33111007162346 |
Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:
"Requiring no more than high-school-level math competency, this playful excursion through the nuances of math will give you a better grasp of this fundamental, all-important science. Veteran math educators demonstrate how some ""magnificent mistakes"" had profound consequences for our understanding of mathematics' key concepts. In the nineteenth century, English mathematician William Shanks spent fifteen years calculating the value of pi, setting a record for the number of decimal places. Later, his calculation was reproduced using large wooden numerals to decorate the cupola of a hall in the Palais de la Decouverte in Paris. However, in 1946, with the aid of a mechanical desk calculator that ran for seventy hours, it was discovered that there was a mistake in the 528th decimal place. Today, supercomputers have determined the value of pi to trillions of decimal places. This is just one of the amusing and intriguing stories about mistakes in mathematics in this layperson's guide to mathematical principles. In another example, the authors show that when we ""prove"" that every triangle is isosceles, we are violating a concept not even known to Euclid-that of ""betweenness."" And if
Includes bibliographical references (pages 279-280) and index.
"Requiring no more than high-school-level math competency, this playful excursion through the nuances of math will give you a better grasp of this fundamental, all-important science"-- Provided by publisher.