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Is math real? : how simple questions lead us to mathematics' deepest truths / Eugenia Cheng.

By: Material type: TextTextPublisher: New York : Basic Books, [2023]Copyright date: ©2023Edition: First US editionDescription: vii, 320 pages : illustrations ; 25 cmContent type:
  • text
Media type:
  • unmediated
Carrier type:
  • volume
ISBN:
  • 9781541601826
  • 1541601823
Subject(s):
Contents:
Where maths comes from -- How maths works -- Why we do math -- What makes maths good -- Letter -- Formulae -- Pictures -- Stories.
Summary: "Where does math come from? From a textbook? From rules? From deduction? From logic? Not really, Eugenia Cheng writes in Is Math Real?: it comes from curiosity, from instinctive human curiosity, "from people not being satisfied with answers and always wanting to understand more." And most importantly, she says, "it comes from questions": not from answering them, but from posing them. Nothing could seem more at odds from the way most of us were taught math: a rigid and autocratic model which taught us to follow specific steps to reach specific answers. Instead of encouraging a child who asks why 1+1 is 2, our methods of education force them to accept it. Instead of exploring why we multiply before we add, a textbook says, just to get on with the order of operations. Indeed, the point is usually just about getting the right answer, and those that are good at that, become "good at math" while those who question, are not. And that's terrible: These very same questions, as Cheng shows, aren't simply annoying questions coming from people who just don't "get it" and so can't do math. Rather, they are what drives mathematical research and push the boundaries in our understanding of all things. Legitimizing those questions, she invites everyone in, whether they think they are good at math or not. And by highlighting the development of mathematics outside Europe, Cheng shows that-western chauvinism notwithstanding--that math can be for anyone who wishes to do it, and how much we gain when anyone can"-- Provided by publisher.
Holdings
Item type Home library Collection Call number Materials specified Status Date due Barcode Item holds
Adult Book Adult Book Main Library NonFiction 510.1 C518 Available 33111011315542
Total holds: 0

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

One of the world's most creative mathematicians offers a "brilliant" and "mesmerizing" ( Popular Science ) new way to look at math--focusing on questions, not answers



Winner of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize and a New Scientist Best Book of the Year



Where do we learn math: From rules in a textbook? From logic and deduction? Not really, according to mathematician Eugenia Cheng: we learn it from human curiosity--most importantly, from asking questions. This may come as a surprise to those who think that math is about finding the one right answer, or those who were told that the "dumb" question they asked just proved they were bad at math. But Cheng shows why people who ask questions like "Why does 1 + 1 = 2?" are at the very heart of the search for mathematical truth.  



Is Math Real? is a much-needed repudiation of the rigid ways we're taught to do math, and a celebration of the true, curious spirit of the discipline. Written with intelligence and passion, Is Math Real? brings us math as we've never seen it before, revealing how profound insights can emerge from seemingly unlikely sources.   

"Published in 2023 in the UK by Profile Books."

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Where maths comes from -- How maths works -- Why we do math -- What makes maths good -- Letter -- Formulae -- Pictures -- Stories.

"Where does math come from? From a textbook? From rules? From deduction? From logic? Not really, Eugenia Cheng writes in Is Math Real?: it comes from curiosity, from instinctive human curiosity, "from people not being satisfied with answers and always wanting to understand more." And most importantly, she says, "it comes from questions": not from answering them, but from posing them. Nothing could seem more at odds from the way most of us were taught math: a rigid and autocratic model which taught us to follow specific steps to reach specific answers. Instead of encouraging a child who asks why 1+1 is 2, our methods of education force them to accept it. Instead of exploring why we multiply before we add, a textbook says, just to get on with the order of operations. Indeed, the point is usually just about getting the right answer, and those that are good at that, become "good at math" while those who question, are not. And that's terrible: These very same questions, as Cheng shows, aren't simply annoying questions coming from people who just don't "get it" and so can't do math. Rather, they are what drives mathematical research and push the boundaries in our understanding of all things. Legitimizing those questions, she invites everyone in, whether they think they are good at math or not. And by highlighting the development of mathematics outside Europe, Cheng shows that-western chauvinism notwithstanding--that math can be for anyone who wishes to do it, and how much we gain when anyone can"-- Provided by publisher.

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