Out of the Labyrinth: Setting Mathematics Free - Softcover

Kaplan, Robert; Kaplan, Ellen

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1608198707 ISBN 13: 9781608198702

Publisher: Bloomsbury Press, 2014

Synopsis

Who hasn't feared the math Minotaur in its labyrinth of abstractions? The subject can seem convoluted and forbidding. Yet to do mathematics is to wrestle with “accessible mysteries”-and Out of the Labyrinth shows how exhilarating the challenge can be. Robert and Ellen Kaplan are founders of the Math Circle, a pioneering learning program begun at Harvard in 1994 and now spreading around the world. In their classrooms students ages six to sixty have discovered mathematics as the highest form of intellectual play, while exploring topics that range from Roman numerals to quantum mechanics.

The Kaplans reveal the secrets of their highly successful approach, leading readers out of the labyrinth and into the joyous embrace of mathematics. Stocked with puzzles, colorful anecdotes, and insights from the authors' own teaching experience, Out of the Labyrinth is both an engaging and practical guide for parents and educators, and a treasure chest of mathematical discoveries. For any reader who has felt the excitement of mathematical discovery-or tried to convey it to someone else-this volume will be a delightful and valued companion.

About this title

About the Author

Robert and Ellen Kaplan have taught subjects ranging from Sanskrit through mathematics to philosophy and history, and founded the Math Circle in 1994. Robert Kaplan is the author of the bestselling The Nothing That Is: A Natural History of Zero. Ellen is coauthor, with their son Michael, of Chances Are . . . and Bozo Sapiens. Together, Robert and Ellen are the authors of The Art of the Infinite. Their website is www.themathcircle.org.

Review

"This book offers an engaging and practical guide for parents and educators, and a delight for anyone interested in sharing the pleasures of mathematics."--Lunar and Planetary Information Bulletin

"Out of the Labyrinth will delight readers with its engaging exploration of mathematics. It will allow students, parents, teachers, and others to wrestle with the accessible mysteries of math- and discover their inner math genius."--Lunar and Planetary Information Bulletin

"Out of the Labyrinth rejoices in the serious play of mathematics and explains how to think about math as a truly common pursuit... This beautiful book - full of fun and full of the wisdom of a lifetime of teaching - is so deftly done that by the time the Kaplans tell us that "math is our other native language," we believe them utterly." -- Barry Mazur, Gerhard Gade University Professor, Harvard University

"I found the book to be a provocative guide to the beauty and glory of mathematics with many excellent suggestions on how to communicate this to others, written by two masters of the art. I enjoyed the sections the most where I agreed with them the least. It challenged every prejudice I had developed about the subject." -- Benedict Gross, Leverett Professor of Mathematics and Dean of Harvard College

Edition details

• Publisher: Bloomsbury Press
• Publication date: 2014
• ISBN 10: 1608198707
• ISBN 13: 9781608198702
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 256