Items related to Artist and the Mathematician
Synopsis
This is the story both of Nicolas Bourbaki and the world that created him. It is the story of an elaborate intellectual joke - because Bourbaki, one of the foremost mathematicians of his day - never existed.
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About the Author
Amir D. Aczel, a visiting scholar in the history of science at Harvard, earned both his B.A. in mathematics and master of sciences degree from the University of California at Berkeley, and a Ph.D. from the University of Oregon. His books have been translated into fifteen languages. He lives outside Boston.
From Publishers Weekly
Lay readers interested in mathematical history will learn a lot they didn't know from Aczel's latest book, which focuses on a group of French mathematicians who in the 1930s decided to publish their collective work under an imaginary name. But readers may also get the feeling that this able math and science popularizer is running out of suitable topics. It's not that the contributions of the Bourbaki school weren't important—their rigorous approach to proofs and emphasis on set theory provided the basis for what became known as the New Math—it's just that this curious story isn't as inherently dramatic as, say, that of Andrew Wiles's solving Fermat's Last Theorem. Aczel surveys with his usual panache the careers of some major members of the group, like the eccentric Alexandre Grothendieck, who in 1991 became a hermit in the Pyrenees, but Aczel is less convincing when he draws simplistic parallels between advances in mathematics and modern art. While always readable, this diffuse narrative (including chapters on Bourbaki's influence on anthropology and linguistics) strains to pull its disparate parts into a satisfactory whole. (Oct. 10)
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- PublisherHigh Stakes Publishing
- Publication date2007
- ISBN 10 1843440393
- ISBN 13 9781843440390
- BindingPaperback
- Number of pages272
- Rating
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ARTIST AND THE MATHEMATICIAN, THE : The Story of Nicolas Bourbaki, the Genius Mathematician Who Never Existed.
Published by
Oldcastle Books Ltd, United Kingdom, Harpenden, Herts, 2007
ISBN 10: 1843440393
ISBN 13: 9781843440390
Used
Paperback
Seller: WorldofBooks, Goring-By-Sea, WS, United Kingdom
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Paperback. Condition: Very Good. From the author of Fermat's Last Theorem and Chance Nicolas Bourbaki, whose mathematical publications began to appear in the late 1930s was a direct product as well as a major force behind an important revolution that took place in the early decades of the twentieth century that completely changed Western culture. Pure mathematics, the area of Bourbaki's work, seems to be an abstract field of human study with no direct connection with the real world. In reality, however, it is closely linked with the general culture that surrounds it. Major developments in mathematics have often followed important trends in popular culture; developments in mathematics have acted as harbingers of change in the surrounding human culture. The seeds of change, the beginnings of the revolution that swept the Western world in the early decades of the twentieth century - both in mathematics and in other areas - were sown late in the previous century. This is the story both of Bourbaki and the world that created him in that time. It is the story of an elaborate intellectual joke - because Bourbaki, one of the foremost mathematicians of his day - never existed. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged. Seller Inventory # GOR002863518
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ARTIST AND THE MATHEMATICIAN, THE : The Story of Nicolas Bourbaki, the Genius Mathematician Who Never Existed.
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Condition: VeryGood. Most items will be dispatched the same or the next working day. Seller Inventory # wbs3609244632
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Artist and the Mathematician, the : The Story of Nicolas Bourbaki, the Genius Mathematician Who Never Existed
Seller: Anybook.com, Lincoln, United Kingdom
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Condition: Good. This is an ex-library book and may have the usual library/used-book markings inside.This book has soft covers. In good all round condition. Seller Inventory # 8596184
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