Julian Havil's Books

Nonplussed!

Mathematical Proof of Implausible Ideas

By: Julian Havil

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Nonplussed!

Mathematical Proof of Implausible Ideas

By: Julian Havil

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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Page Count

213

Publisher

Princeton University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

1400837383

ISBN 13

9781400837380

The Irrationals

A Story of the Numbers You Can't Count On

By: Julian Havil

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The Irrationals

A Story of the Numbers You Can't Count On

By: Julian Havil

An entertaining and enlightening history of irrational numbers, from ancient Greece to the twenty-first century The ancient Greeks discovered them, but it wasn't until the nineteenth century that irrational numbers were properly understood and rigorously defined, and even today not all their mysteries have been revealed. In The Irrationals, the first popular and comprehensive book on the subject, Julian Havil tells the story of irrational numbers and the mathematicians who have tackled their challenges, from antiquity to the twenty-first century. Along the way, he explains why irrational numbers are surprisingly difficult to define—and why so many questions still surround them. Fascinating and illuminating, this is a book for everyone who loves math and the history behind it.

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Page Count

320

Publisher

Princeton University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0691247668

ISBN 13

9780691247663

Gamma

Exploring Euler's Constant

By: Julian Havil

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Gamma

Exploring Euler's Constant

By: Julian Havil

In a blend of history and mathematics, this work takes the reader on a journey through logarithms and the harmonic series, the two defining elements of gamma, toward the first account of gamma's place in mathematics.

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Page Count

266

Published Date

ISBN 10

0691099839

ISBN 13

9780691099835

Curves for the Mathematically Curious

An Anthology of the Unpredictable, Historical, Beautiful, and Romantic

By: Julian Havil

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Curves for the Mathematically Curious

An Anthology of the Unpredictable, Historical, Beautiful, and Romantic

By: Julian Havil

Ten amazing curves personally selected by one of today's most important math writers Curves for the Mathematically Curious is a thoughtfully curated collection of ten mathematical curves, selected by Julian Havil for their significance, mathematical interest, and beauty. Each chapter gives an account of the history and definition of one curve, providing a glimpse into the elegant and often surprising mathematics involved in its creation and evolution. In telling the ten stories, Havil introduces many mathematicians and other innovators, some whose fame has withstood the passing of years and others who have slipped into comparative obscurity. You will meet Pierre Bézier, who is known for his ubiquitous and eponymous curves, and Adolphe Quetelet, who trumpeted the ubiquity of the normal curve but whose name now hides behind the modern body mass index. These and other ingenious thinkers engaged with the challenges, incongruities, and insights to be found in these remarkable curves—and now you can share in this adventure. Curves for the Mathematically Curious is a rigorous and enriching mathematical experience for anyone interested in curves, and the book is designed so that readers who choose can follow the details with pencil and paper. Every curve has a story worth telling.

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Page Count

280

Publisher

Princeton University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0691206139

ISBN 13

9780691206134

Gamma

By: Julian Havil

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Gamma

By: Julian Havil

Among the myriad of constants that appear in mathematics, p, e, and i are the most familiar. Following closely behind is g, or gamma, a constant that arises in many mathematical areas yet maintains a profound sense of mystery. In a tantalizing blend of history and mathematics, Julian Havil takes the reader on a journey through logarithms and the harmonic series, the two defining elements of gamma, toward the first account of gamma's place in mathematics. Introduced by the Swiss mathematician Leonhard Euler (1707-1783), who figures prominently in this.

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Page Count

292

Publisher

Princeton University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0691178100

ISBN 13

9780691178103

Impossible?

Surprising Solutions to Counterintuitive Conundrums

By: Julian Havil

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Impossible?

Surprising Solutions to Counterintuitive Conundrums

By: Julian Havil

In Nonplussed!, popular-math writer Julian Havil delighted readers with a mind-boggling array of implausible yet true mathematical paradoxes. Now Havil is back with Impossible?, another marvelous medley of the utterly confusing, profound, and unbelievable—and all of it mathematically irrefutable. Whenever Forty-second Street in New York is temporarily closed, traffic doesn't gridlock but flows more smoothly—why is that? Or consider that cities that build new roads can experience dramatic increases in traffic congestion—how is this possible? What does the game show Let's Make A Deal reveal about the unexpected hazards of decision-making? What can the game of cricket teach us about the surprising behavior of the law of averages? These are some of the counterintuitive mathematical occurrences that readers encounter in Impossible? Havil ventures further than ever into territory where intuition can lead one astray. He gathers entertaining problems from probability and statistics along with an eclectic variety of conundrums and puzzlers from other areas of mathematics, including classics of abstract math like the Banach-Tarski paradox. These problems range in difficulty from easy to highly challenging, yet they can be tackled by anyone with a background in calculus. And the fascinating history and personalities associated with many of the problems are included with their mathematical proofs. Impossible? will delight anyone who wants to have their reason thoroughly confounded in the most astonishing and unpredictable ways.

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Page Count

250

Publisher

Princeton University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

1400829674

ISBN 13

9781400829675

John Napier

Life, Logarithms, and Legacy

By: Julian Havil

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John Napier

Life, Logarithms, and Legacy

By: Julian Havil

The most comprehensive account of the mathematician's life and work John Napier (1550–1617) is celebrated today as the man who invented logarithms—an enormous intellectual achievement that would soon lead to the development of their mechanical equivalent in the slide rule: the two would serve humanity as the principal means of calculation until the mid-1970s. Yet, despite Napier's pioneering efforts, his life and work have not attracted detailed modern scrutiny. John Napier is the first contemporary biography to take an in-depth look at the multiple facets of Napier’s story: his privileged position as the eighth Laird of Merchiston and the son of influential Scottish landowners; his reputation as a magician who dabbled in alchemy; his interest in agriculture; his involvement with a notorious outlaw; his staunch anti-Catholic beliefs; his interactions with such peers as Henry Briggs, Johannes Kepler, and Tycho Brahe; and, most notably, his estimable mathematical legacy. Julian Havil explores Napier’s original development of logarithms, the motivations for his approach, and the reasons behind certain adjustments to them. Napier’s inventive mathematical ideas also include formulas for solving spherical triangles, "Napier’s Bones" (a more basic but extremely popular alternative device for calculation), and the use of decimal notation for fractions and binary arithmetic. Havil also considers Napier’s study of the Book of Revelation, which led to his prediction of the Apocalypse in his first book, A Plaine Discovery of the Whole Revelation of St. John—the work for which Napier believed he would be most remembered. John Napier assesses one man’s life and the lasting influence of his advancements on the mathematical sciences and beyond.

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Page Count

297

Publisher

Princeton University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

1400852188

ISBN 13

9781400852185

Curves for the Mathematically Curious

An Anthology of the Unpredictable, Historical, Beautiful, and Romantic

By: Julian Havil

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Curves for the Mathematically Curious

An Anthology of the Unpredictable, Historical, Beautiful, and Romantic

By: Julian Havil

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Solve jigsaw puzzle

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Page Count

280

Publisher

Princeton University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0691206139

ISBN 13

9780691206134

The Irrationals

A Story of the Numbers You Can't Count On

By: Julian Havil

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The Irrationals

A Story of the Numbers You Can't Count On

By: Julian Havil

Annotation The ancient Greeks discovered them, but it wasn't until the nineteenth century that irrational numbers were properly understood and rigorously defined, and even today not all their mysteries have been revealed. InThe Irrationals, the first popular and comprehensive book on the subject, Julian Havil tells the story of irrational numbers and the mathematicians who have tackled their challenges, from antiquity to the twenty-first century. Along the way, he explains why irrational numbers are surprisingly difficult to define--and why so many questions still surround them. That definition seems so simple: they are numbers that cannot be expressed as a ratio of two integers, or that have decimal expansions that are neither infinite nor recurring. But, asThe Irrationalsshows, these are the real "complex" numbers, and they have an equally complex and intriguing history, from Euclid's famous proof that the square root of 2 is irrational to Roger Apéry's proof of the irrationality of a number called Zeta(3), one of the greatest results of the twentieth century. In between, Havil explains other important results, such as the irrationality of e and pi. He also discusses the distinction between "ordinary" irrationals and transcendentals, as well as the appealing question of whether the decimal expansion of irrationals is "random". Fascinating and illuminating, this is a book for everyone who loves math and the history behind it.

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Page Count

310

Publisher

Princeton University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0691163537

ISBN 13

9780691163536

Impossible?

Surprising Solutions to Counterintuitive Conundrums

By: Julian Havil

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Impossible?

Surprising Solutions to Counterintuitive Conundrums

By: Julian Havil

In 'Nonplussed!', popular-math writer Julian Havil presented a mind-boggling array of implausible yet true mathematical paradoxes. This book presents another medley of the utterly confusing, profound, and unbelievable, and all of it mathematically irrefutable.

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Page Count

249

Publisher

Princeton University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0691131317

ISBN 13

9780691131313

John Napier

Life, Logarithms, and Legacy

By: Julian Havil

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John Napier

Life, Logarithms, and Legacy

By: Julian Havil

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Page Count

296

Publisher

Princeton University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0691155704

ISBN 13

9780691155708

Gamma

By: Julian Havil

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Gamma

By: Julian Havil

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Solve jigsaw puzzle

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Page Count

292

Publisher

Princeton University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0691178100

ISBN 13

9780691178103

Book's by Julian Havil

Nonplussed!

Nonplussed!

The Irrationals

The Irrationals

Gamma

Gamma

Curves for the Mathematically Curious

Curves for the Mathematically Curious

Gamma

Gamma

Impossible?

Impossible?

John Napier

John Napier

Curves for the Mathematically Curious

Curves for the Mathematically Curious

The Irrationals

The Irrationals

Impossible?

Impossible?

John Napier

John Napier

Gamma

Gamma

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