King of Infinite Space by Siobhan Roberts
The word geometry makes one think of circles, triangles, protractors and Pythagoras. By the middle of the 20th Century it all looked dead, as the excitement in maths had moved to computers and chaos theory. But one man - Donald Coxeter - kept the torch burning, showing how geometry is at the core of all mathematics, and indeed governs our life from architecture to car design, from animated films to food molecules. He showed the importance of geometry for data mining - now the most innovative area of computer research - and showed not only how beautiful the mathematics of shape is, but also how vitally important.
"'Tells a brave, compelling story..of kaleidoscopes and crystals, groups and symmetry, bicycles and snowflakes, music and movement. It is lucid, beautiful, and exalting.' James Gleick, author of Chaos and Faster "Her beautifully written tribute is rich in details about Coxeter's long life and his colourful interactions with the world's top mathematicians. I found it impossible to stop reading." Martin Gardner, author of The Ambidextrous Universe. "A lively view of the history of mathematics while weaving the story of Donald Coxeter, a broad-minded genius who built an important bridge between two opposite extremes of mathematical creation - the pictorial world of classical geometry and the ideal world of abstract algebra." Freeman Dyson author of Disturbing the Universe"
Siobhan Roberts won a National Magazine Award for her profile of Donald Coxeter. She lives in Toronto.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9781846680076 |
| ISBN 10 | 1846680077 |
| Title | King of Infinite Space |
| Author | Siobhan Roberts |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Profile Books Ltd |
| Year published | 2007-11-01 |
| Number of pages | 416 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |