Mage Merlin's Unsolved Mathematical Mysteries

Devadoss, Satyan, Harvey, Matthew

ISBN 10: 0262542757 / ISBN 13: 9780262542753

Published by The MIT Press, 2021

About this Item

Very Good Condition - May show some limited signs of wear and may have a remainder mark. Pages and dust cover are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. Seller Inventory # MIT-PB-VG-0262542757

Bibliographic Details

Title: Mage Merlin's Unsolved Mathematical Mysteries

Publisher: The MIT Press

Publication Date: 2021

Binding: paperback

Condition: Very Good

About this title

Synopsis:

Sixteen of today's greatest unsolved mathematical puzzles in a story-driven, illustrated volume that invites readers to peek over the edge of the unknown.

Most people think of mathematics as a set of useful tools designed to answer analytical questions, beginning with simple arithmetic and ending with advanced calculus. But, as Mage Merlin's Unsolved Mathematical Mysteries shows, mathematics is filled with intriguing mysteries that take us to the edge of the unknown. This richly illustrated, story-driven volume presents sixteen of today's greatest unsolved mathematical puzzles, all understandable by anyone with elementary math skills. These intriguing mysteries are presented to readers as puzzles that have time-traveled from Camelot, preserved in the notebook of Merlin, the wise magician in King Arthur's court.

Our guide is Mage Maryam (named in honor of the brilliant young mathematician, the late Maryam Mirzakhani), a distant descendant of Merlin. Maryam introduces the mysteries--each of which is presented across two beautifully illustrated pages--and provides mathematical and historical context afterward. We find Merlin confronting mathematical puzzles involving tinker toys (a present for Camelot's princesses from the sorceress Morgana), cake-slicing at a festival, Lancelot's labyrinth, a vault for the Holy Grail, and more. Each mystery is a sword awaiting removal from its stone, capturing the beauty and power of mathematics.

About the Author:

Satyan Linus Devadoss is the Fletcher Jones Professor of Applied Mathematics and Professor of Computer Science at the University of San Diego. A recipient of two national teaching awards, he has published on topics ranging from origami and cartography to phylogenetics and particle collisions. Matthew Harvey is Professor of Mathematics at the University of Virginia's College at Wise and the author of the textbook Geometry Illuminated.