Games and Mathematics

Subtle Connections

AvDavid Wells

Häftad, Engelska, 2012

329 kr

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Beskrivning

The appeal of games and puzzles is timeless and universal. In this unique book, David Wells explores the fascinating connections between games and mathematics, proving that mathematics is not just about tedious calculation but imagination, insight and intuition. The first part of the book introduces games, puzzles and mathematical recreations, including knight tours on a chessboard. The second part explains how thinking about playing games can mirror the thinking of a mathematician, using scientific investigation, tactics and strategy, and sharp observation. Finally the author considers game-like features found in a wide range of human behaviours, illuminating the role of mathematics and helping to explain why it exists at all. This thought-provoking book is perfect for anyone with a thirst for mathematics and its hidden beauty; a good high school grounding in mathematics is all the background that is required, and the puzzles and games will suit pupils from 14 years.

Produktinformation

Utgivningsdatum:2012-10-18
Mått:152 x 229 x 16 mm
Vikt:420 g
Format:Häftad
Språk:Engelska
Antal sidor:255
Förlag:Cambridge University Press
ISBN:9781107690912

Utforska kategorier

Optimering inom Naturvetenskap och teknik

Mer om författaren

David Wells is the author of more than a dozen books on popular mathematics, puzzles and recreations. He has written many articles on mathematics teaching and a secondary mathematics course based on problem-solving. A former British under-21 chess champion, he has also worked as a game inventor and puzzle editor.

Recensioner i media

'One of the wellsprings out of which the discipline of mathematics has developed is human delight in intellectual play, manifest in the ubiquity of abstract games across millennia and cultures. The author of this fascinating book is expert in both domains, and in the art of clearly explaining significant aspects of mathematics in ways both accessible to non-experts and illuminating to experts. Through a delightfully rich variety of historical and multicultural examples, he unveils the intimate relationship between abstract games and mathematics as the study of structures, and, in so doing, illuminates much more about mathematical behaviour and cognition. At a time when too much of mathematics education in school seems designed to squeeze out every last drop of playfulness, we are reminded that mathematics can, and should, be an intellectual playground.' Brian Greer, Portland State University

Innehållsförteckning

Introduction; Part I. Mathematical recreations and abstract games: 1. Recreations from Euler to Lucas; 2. Four abstract games; 3. Mathematics and games: mysterious connections; 4. Why chess is not mathematics; 5. Proving versus checking; Part II. Mathematics: game-like, scientific and perceptual: 6. Game-like mathematics; 7. Euclid and the rules of his geometrical game; 8. New concepts and new objects; 9. Convergent and divergent series; 10. Mathematics becomes game-like; 11. Maths as science; 12. Numbers and sequences; 13. Computers and mathematics; 14. Mathematics and the sciences; 15. Minimum paths from Heron to Feynmann; 16. The foundations: perception, imagination and insight; 17. Structure; 18. Hidden structure, common structure; 19. Mathematics and beauty; 20. Origins: formality in the everyday world; Bibliography; Index.