Archimedes’ Revenge by Paul Hoffman (PDF)

Description

Now anyone can understand what the mathematical geniuses are thinking . . . .* How topologists figured out the way to turn a smokestack into a bowling ball — and why.* How game theorists discovered that to elect the candidate of your choice you must sometimes vote for his opponent.* How computer theorists intend to create a robot that will think for itself — and do all the housework.* How cryptographers have been laboring since 1822 to decipher a map that will lead to a buried treasure worth millions of dollars.Archimedes’ Revenge takes the reader on a guided tour of the world of contemporary mathematics and makes its infinite marvels comprehensible, relevant, and fun.”A breezy and lighthearted account of a number of topics in and around the periphery of mathematics . . . Mr. Hoffman approaches mathematics as a storyteller, and a good one.” — The New York Times Book Review

User’s Reviews

Editorial Reviews: Amazon.com Review Archimedes’ Revenge is an extremely accessible, lighthearted account of a number of mathematical topics, many with modern interest, such as complexity theory. Hoffman quotes living mathematicians extensively, giving the reader a feel for the nature of the mathematical community and insight into how this community attempts to resolve open questions. This book is low in mathematical rigor, making it suitable for any interested reader. From the Inside Flap an understand what the mathematical geniuses are thinking . . . .* How topologists figured out the way to turn a smokestack into a bowling ball — and why.* How game theorists discovered that to elect the candidate of your choice you must sometimes vote for his opponent.* How computer theorists intend to create a robot that will think for itself — and do all the housework.* How cryptographers have been laboring since 1822 to decipher a map that will lead to a buried treasure worth millions of dollars.Archimedes’ Revenge takes the reader on a guided tour of the world of contemporary mathematics and makes its infinite marvels comprehensible, relevant, and fun.”A breezy and lighthearted account of a number of topics in and around the periphery of mathematics . . . Mr. Hoffman approaches mathematics as a storyteller, and a good one.” — The New York Times Book Review

Reviews from Amazon users which were colected at the time this book was published on the website:

⭐Most people have math-phobia, which is too bad, because math exhibits a certain beauty and perfection. The great thing about Paul Hoffman’s “Archimedes’ Revenge” is that he shows you the beauty and perfection without your having to be a math major to understand.Moreover, for anyone who’s wondered what use math is, Hoffman can answer that as well. Among the subjects covered are: cryptology (code making and code breaking), architecture, computer science, and political science.The book is divided into a number of sections, ranging from number theory to topology to game theory. While these may sound like esoteric (and useless) concepts, Hoffman masterfully weaves in stories, such as the (in)famous Beale cipher, a secretly coded treasure map that has resisted all attempts to crack it for over 100 years.I recommended to a colleague of mine that she buy this book for her teenage son, who is bright but a slacker. She reported that he raved about the book and was so eager to discuss it with her!As an example of the sort of thing covered in this book, Hoffman describes a game where A, B, and C all have balloons and darts. A hits his target 80% of the time; B hits his target 60% of the time; and C hits his target 40% of the time. If each person attacks his strongest opponent, who wins most often? Surprisingly, the answer is C, because A and B concentrate their attacks on each other.In summary, if you have math-phobia but would like to conquer it, this is a great place to start. There are no equations to speak of, just concepts explained in (relatively) plain English. It may take a couple of readings to understand it all, but it’s definitely within grasp for those who progressed no farther than Algebra 2 in high school.

⭐Well written and the author anticipates current interest in number theoryand cryptography. It reminded me very much of the earlier Martin Gardner ” Mathematical Magic Show”.

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