

Softcover ISBN: | 978-1-4704-7012-8 |
Product Code: | SPEC/104 |
List Price: | $35.00 |
MAA Member Price: | $26.25 |
AMS Member Price: | $26.25 |
eBook ISBN: | 978-1-4704-7149-1 |
Product Code: | SPEC/104.E |
List Price: | $35.00 |
MAA Member Price: | $26.25 |
AMS Member Price: | $26.25 |
Softcover ISBN: | 978-1-4704-7012-8 |
eBook: ISBN: | 978-1-4704-7149-1 |
Product Code: | SPEC/104.B |
List Price: | $70.00 $52.50 |
MAA Member Price: | $52.50 $39.38 |
AMS Member Price: | $52.50 $39.38 |


Softcover ISBN: | 978-1-4704-7012-8 |
Product Code: | SPEC/104 |
List Price: | $35.00 |
MAA Member Price: | $26.25 |
AMS Member Price: | $26.25 |
eBook ISBN: | 978-1-4704-7149-1 |
Product Code: | SPEC/104.E |
List Price: | $35.00 |
MAA Member Price: | $26.25 |
AMS Member Price: | $26.25 |
Softcover ISBN: | 978-1-4704-7012-8 |
eBook ISBN: | 978-1-4704-7149-1 |
Product Code: | SPEC/104.B |
List Price: | $70.00 $52.50 |
MAA Member Price: | $52.50 $39.38 |
AMS Member Price: | $52.50 $39.38 |
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Book DetailsSpectrumVolume: 104; 2022; 209 ppMSC: Primary 00; 05; 97
The soul of mathematics is the practice of skeptical inquiry: asking how and why things work, experimenting, exploring, and discovering. Estimation, analysis, computation, conjecture, and proof are the mathematical path to uncovering truth and we can use them in nearly every human pursuit. In this thoroughly charming and beguiling book, Shai Simonson applies mathematical tools in a variety of contexts that arise in everyday life to prove his claim that math is, literally, everywhere. Simonson applies his mathematical cast of mind to hiking, birthday parties, carnival games, lock picking, and kite flying. We see unexpected depths and connections when we look in the “wrong” places in the right way.
No advanced mathematical knowledge is required to travel with Simonson and share in his investigations. All a reader needs is an open and curious mind, an eagerness to ask questions, and a willingness to think deeply and carefully about seemingly mundane things. There is wonder and joy in quotidian life with Simonson as your guide.
ReadershipUndergraduate students interested in seeing mathematics in unusual applications.
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Table of Contents
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Chapters
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Introduction
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Summer carnivals
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Games
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Holidays
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Magic
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Locks
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Limits
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Wine and averages
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Music
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Parabolas, caternaries, and kites
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A day in the woods
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Viral puzzles
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Happy birthday
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COVID-19
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Estimations
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High-tech interviews
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Sports
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Appendix. Java program for simplex locks
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Additional Material
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Reviews
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Rarely have I enjoyed a book so much.
Paul J. Campbell, Reviews Editor, MAA's Mathematics Magazine
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RequestsReview Copy – for publishers of book reviewsAccessibility – to request an alternate format of an AMS title
- Book Details
- Table of Contents
- Additional Material
- Reviews
- Requests
The soul of mathematics is the practice of skeptical inquiry: asking how and why things work, experimenting, exploring, and discovering. Estimation, analysis, computation, conjecture, and proof are the mathematical path to uncovering truth and we can use them in nearly every human pursuit. In this thoroughly charming and beguiling book, Shai Simonson applies mathematical tools in a variety of contexts that arise in everyday life to prove his claim that math is, literally, everywhere. Simonson applies his mathematical cast of mind to hiking, birthday parties, carnival games, lock picking, and kite flying. We see unexpected depths and connections when we look in the “wrong” places in the right way.
No advanced mathematical knowledge is required to travel with Simonson and share in his investigations. All a reader needs is an open and curious mind, an eagerness to ask questions, and a willingness to think deeply and carefully about seemingly mundane things. There is wonder and joy in quotidian life with Simonson as your guide.
Undergraduate students interested in seeing mathematics in unusual applications.
-
Chapters
-
Introduction
-
Summer carnivals
-
Games
-
Holidays
-
Magic
-
Locks
-
Limits
-
Wine and averages
-
Music
-
Parabolas, caternaries, and kites
-
A day in the woods
-
Viral puzzles
-
Happy birthday
-
COVID-19
-
Estimations
-
High-tech interviews
-
Sports
-
Appendix. Java program for simplex locks
-
Rarely have I enjoyed a book so much.
Paul J. Campbell, Reviews Editor, MAA's Mathematics Magazine