[ Alex Bellos]The Grapes of Math How Life Reflects Numbers and Numbers Reflect Life (epub){Zzzzz}

From the bestselling author of Here’s Looking at Euclid, a dazzling new book that turns even the most complex math into a brilliantly entertaining narrative.

From triangles, rotations and power laws, to cones, curves and the dreaded calculus, Alex takes you on a journey of mathematical discovery with his signature wit and limitless enthusiasm. He sifts through over 30,000 survey submissions to uncover the world’s favourite number, and meets a mathematician who looks for universes in his garage. He attends the World Mathematical Congress in India, and visits the engineer who designed the first roller-coaster loop.

Get hooked on math as Alex delves deep into humankind’s turbulent relationship with numbers, and reveals how they have shaped the world we live in.

Publisher: Simon & Schuster (June 10, 2014)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1451640099
ISBN-13: 978-1451640090

Editorial Reviews
Review
"Another sparkling romp through the world of numbers, with the inimitable Alex Bellos as your friendly, informed, and crystal-clear guide. A brilliant successor to Here's Looking at Euclid." (Ian Stewart, Professor of Mathematics, University of Warwick, and author of Visions of Infinity)

"Love the book! Fresh, fascinating and endlessly charming. A splendiferous book altogether." (Tim Harford, Financial Times, author of The Undercover Economist Strikes Back)

"See, numbers don't have to be scary!" (Evan Davis)

"Alex Bellos’ The Grapes of Math is a delicious grab bag of mathematical miscellany that includes Benford’s law, fractals, exponentials and imaginary numbers, the Game of Life, among many other goodies, all presented in a most entertaining style. Both fun and instructive." (John Allen Paulos is the author of several books including Innumeracy and A Mathematician Reads the Newspaper)

"Think of the best storyteller you know and the coolest teacher you ever had, and now you’ve got some idea of what Alex Bellos is like. His Grapes of Math taught me something new on every page. Better yet, it made me laugh and want to tell someone what I’d just read. Math has never been so much fun." (Steven Strogatz, professor of applied mathematics, Cornell University, and author, The Joy of x)

“[A] first-rate survey of the world of mathematics by a British practitioner of the art.... Great reading for the intellectually curious.” (Kirkus)

“Channeling the spirit of Martin Gardner, the Guardian's math blogger Bellos (Here's Looking at Euclid) reveals—and revels in—the pleasures of mathematics, which he has dubbed ‘the most playful of all intellectual disciplines.’… Bellos introduces fascinating characters, from the retired cabdriver in Tucson whose hobby is factoring prime numbers, to swashbuckling astronomer Tycho Brahe, who lost his nose in a duel over a math formula. Through intriguing characters, lively prose, and thoroughly accessible mathematics, Bellos deftly shows readers why math is so important, and why it can be so much fun.” (Publishers Weekly (starred))

“An excellent book on what could be called ‘mathematics appreciation’” (Library Journal)

About the Author

Alex Bellos has a degree in Mathematics and Philosophy from Oxford University. Curator-in-residence at the Science Museum and the Guardian’s math blogger, he has worked in London and Rio de Janeiro, where he was the paper's unusually numerate foreign correspondent. In 2002 he wrote Futebol, a critically acclaimed book about Brazilian football, and in 2006 he ghostwrote Pelé's autobiography, which was a number one bestseller. Here’s Looking at Euclid was shortlisted for the BBC Samuel Johnson Prize and was a Sunday Times bestseller for more than four months.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

LOVE MATH...LOVE THIS BOOK..
By C.A.T. on July 25, 2014
I love math....love this book. I am a mathematician and a retired analyst and accountant. The topics in the book appeal to my fascination with the study of number theory and geometry. Bellos writes with clarity and humor. Some math formulas and derivations may not be obvious to the average reader, but for those with math background or a love of math, they are well defined. In either case, the reader can skim the proofs and continue the lesson without math analysis. It is thought provoking and filled with "I never knew that!" I wish that this portal of info had been opened for me years ago, and I would have had the opportunity to branch out into some of the underlying thoughts and history of math. My college courses did not accommodate that, but now I am eager to find the reasons why I and others truly love the study of mathematics... it reaches far deeper than mere memorization and rote processes. This books takes the reader to a sub-level which brings new dimension to the study of math and numbers.

A delightful read
By ubpdqn on August 3, 2014
This is a very enjoyable read. The author has a very entertaining and engaging writing style. The book starts looks at psychological aspects of human relationship to numbers. Thereafter, we are taken on a journey through triangles, circles, conic sections, complex numbers, calculus, cellular automata and proof and more. Pi, e, and i are characters and the amazing appearance and connectedness is expressed. This is a very rich journey through history and exposition of the variety of applications some seemingly esoteric areas have found. I particularly enjoyed the sections on roulettes.

The book is not a technical explanation but invites the reader to play: whether it is origami to produce a parabola, rolling one coin over another, or looking for patterns in your cup to tea. However, the concepts are expressed clearly and convincingly.

The complex dynamic interaction between development of mathematics and its applications: motivations, personalities and serendipity in complex feedback loops , shows what a wonderfully human endeavour Mathematics is.

Caution: Do not read before bedtime
By George M. Dunne JR on July 12, 2014
The math nerds handbook for useful historical fact and fresh insight into concepts your teachers and professors probably skipped over.
Caution: Do not read before bedtime as it will stimulate your mind with thoughts of the abstracts of algebra and irrationality of numbers.

Don't let the Math Scare You Off - Really Interesting History of Math
By D. Jeske on August 11, 2014
One of my favorite books in recent memory. Don't let the math scare you. As the author says in the introduction, if the math gets to deep skip it and move on as he resets at each chapter. I think of this as a more a history of the development of math and I found it wildly