Sphere Packing, Lewis Carroll, and Reversi: Martin Gardner's New Mathematical Diversions

ISBN-13: 9780521756075 / Angielski / Twarda / 2009 / 282 str.

Martin Gardner

Opis

Packing spheres, Reversi, braids, polyominoes, board games, and the puzzles of Lewis Carroll. These and other mathematical diversions return to readers with updates to all the chapters, including new game variations, mathematical proofs, and other developments and discoveries. Read about Knuth s Word Ladders program and the latest developments in the digits of pi. Once again these timeless puzzles will charm readers while demonstrating principles of logic, probability, geometry, and other fields of mathematics."

Recenzje

'Gardner's monthly romp through recreational math and logic ran in Scientific American for 25 years, from the Sputnik splash to the Reagan reign, and nobody has been able to match it since. 'Mathematical Games' was an orgy of right-brain tomfoolery that could be approached for superficial fun or deep insight, or both at the same time … I can't think of a better present for a clever 12-year old, bored undergraduate, restless retiree, or stay-at-home parent fearing intellectual stagnation.' David Brooks, The Telegraph

Spis treści

1. The binary system; 2. Group theory and braids; 3. Eight problems; 4. The games and puzzles of Lewis Carroll; 5. Paper cutting; 6. Board games; 7. Sphere packing; 8. The transcendental number Pi; 9. Victor Eigen, mathemagician; 10. The four-color map theorem; 11. Mr. Apollinax visits New York; 12. Nine problems; 13. Polyominoes and fault-free rectangles; 14. Euler's spoilers: the discovery of an Order-10 Graeco-Latin square; 15. The ellipse; 16. The 24 color squares and the 30 color cubes; 17. H. S. M. Coxeter; 18. Bridg-it and other games; 19. Nine more problems; 20. The calculus of finite differences.