The Math Instinct by Keith Devlin

The Math Instinct by Keith Devlin

There are two kinds of math: the hard kind and the easy kind. The easy kind, practiced by ants, shrimp, Welsh Corgis and us is innate. But what innate calculating skills do we humans have? Leaving aside built-in mathematics, such as the visual system, ordinary people do just fine when faced with mathematical tasks in the course of the day. Yet when they are confronted with the same tasks presented as math, their accuracy often drops. If we have innate mathematical ability, why do we have to teach math and why do most of us find it so hard to learn? Are there tricks or strategies that the ordinary person can do to improve mathematical ability? Can we improve our math skills by learning from dogs, cats, and other creatures that do math? The answer to each of these questions is a qualified yes. All these examples of animal math suggest that if we want to do better in the formal kind of math, we should see how it arises from natural mathematics. From NPR's Math Guy, The Math Instinct is a real celebration of innate math sense and will provide even the most number-phobic readers with confidence in their own mathematical abilities.

Dr. Keith Devlin is a mathematician at Stanford University in California. He is a co-founder and Executive Director of the university's H-STAR institute, a co-founder of the Stanford Media X research network, and a Senior Researcher at CSLI. He has written 31 books and over 80 published research articles. His books have been awarded the Pythagoras Prize and the Peano Prize, and his writing has earned him the Carl Sagan Award, and the Joint Policy Board for Mathematics Communications Award. In 2003, he was recognized by the California State Assembly for his innovative work and longtime service in the field of mathematics and its relation to logic and linguistics. He is the Math Guy on National Public Radio. (Archived at http: //www.stanford.edu/ kdevlin/MathGuy.html.)

He is a World Economic Forum Fellow and a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. His current research is focused on the use of different media to teach and communicate mathematics to diverse audiences. He also works on the design of information/reasoning systems for intelligence analysis. Other research interests include: theory of information, models of reasoning, applications of mathematical techniques in the study of communication, and mathematical cognition.

He writes a monthly column for the Mathematical Association of America, Devlin's Angle: http: //www.maa.org/devlin/devangle.ht

SKU	Nicht verfügbar
ISBN 13	9781560256724
ISBN 10	1560256729
Titel	The Math Instinct
Autor	Keith Devlin
Buchzustand	Nicht verfügbar
Bindungsart	Hardback
Verlag	Thunder's Mouth Press
Erscheinungsjahr	2005-03-27
Seitenanzahl	272
Hinweis auf dem Einband	Die Abbildung des Buches dient nur Illustrationszwecken, die tatsächliche Bindung, das Cover und die Auflage können sich davon unterscheiden.
Hinweis	Nicht verfügbar