The Man Who Knew Infinity: A Life of the Genius Ramanujan

Kanigel, Robert

ISBN 10: 0671750615 / ISBN 13: 9780671750619

Published by Washington Square Press, New York, 1992

About this Item

Trade PB in illustrated wraps. Very Good. Corners curled and creased, edgewear; square w/flat spine and firm binding, interior clean and unmarked. 438pp inc. Epilogue, Notes, Author's Note, Selected Bibliography, Index; illustrated in photos, map endpapers. Biography of the mathematics genius. 464 p.

Seller Inventory # 028688

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Man Who Knew Infinity: A Life of the Genius Ramanujan
• Publisher: Washington Square Press, New York
• Publication Date: 1992
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0671750615
• ISBN 13: 9780671750619
• Binding: Trade Paper
• Printing: 5th or later Printin
• Condition: Very Good
• Dust Jacket Condition: Wraps
• Book Type: Book
• Seller catalogs:
  • Non-Fiction

About this title

Synopsis

NOW A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE STARRING JEREMY IRONS AND DEV PATEL!

A moving and enlightening look at the unbelievable true story of how gifted prodigy Ramanujan stunned the scholars of Cambridge University and revolutionized mathematics.

In 1913, a young unschooled Indian clerk wrote a letter to G H Hardy, begging the preeminent English mathematician's opinion on several ideas he had about numbers. Realizing the letter was the work of a genius, Hardy arranged for Srinivasa Ramanujan to come to England.

Thus began one of the most improbable and productive collaborations ever chronicled. With a passion for rich and evocative detail, Robert Kanigel takes us from the temples and slums of Madras to the courts and chapels of Cambridge University, where the devout Hindu Ramanujan, "the Prince of Intuition," tested his brilliant theories alongside the sophisticated and eccentric Hardy, "the Apostle of Proof."

In time, Ramanujan's creative intensity took its toll: he died at the age of thirty-two, but left behind a magical and inspired legacy that is still being plumbed for its secrets today.

About the Author

Robert Kanigel is the author of six previous books. He has been the recipient of numerous awards, including a Guggenheim Fellowship and the Grady-Stack Award for science writing. His book The Man Who Knew Infinity was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award and the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. His work has appeared in numerous publications, including The New York Times Magazine, The New York Times Book Review, Harvard Magazine, and Psychology Today. He has just retired as Professor of Science Writing at MIT in Cambridge, Massachusetts and now lives in Baltimore.