Solid geometry is the traditional name for what we call today the geometry of three-dimensional Euclidean space. Courses in solid geometry have largely disappeared from American high schools and colleges. The authors are convinced that a mathematical exploration of three-dimensional geometry merits some attention in today’s curriculum. A Mathematical Space Odyssey: Solid Geometry in the 21st Century is devoted to presenting techniques for proving a variety of mathematical results in three-dimensional space, techniques that may improve one’s ability to think visually. Special attention is given to the classical icons of solid geometry (prisms, pyramids, platonic solids, cones, cylinders, and spheres) and many new and classical results: Cavalieri’s principle, Commandino’s theorem, de Gua’s theorem, Prince Rupert’s cube, the Menger sponge, the Schwarz lantern, Euler’s rotation theorem, the Loomis-Whitney inequality, Pythagorean theorems in three dimensions, etc. The authors devote a chapter to each of the following basic techniques for exploring space and proving theorems: enumeration, representation, dissection, plane sections, intersection, iteration, motion, projection, and folding and unfolding. In addition to many figures illustrating theorems and their proofs, a selection of photographs of three-dimensional works of art and architecture are included. Each chapter includes a selection of Challenges for the reader to explore further properties and applications. It concludes with solutions to all the Challenges in the book, references, and a complete index. Readers should be familiar with high school algebra, plane and analytic geometry, and trigonometry. While brief appearances of calculus do occur, no knowledge of calculus is necessary to enjoy this book.

Solid geometry is the traditional name for what we call today the geometry of three-dimensional Euclidean space. This book presents techniques for proving a variety of geometric results in three dimensions. Special attention is given to prisms, pyramids, platonic solids, cones, cylinders and spheres, as well as many new and classical results. A chapter is devoted to each of the following basic techniques for exploring space and proving theorems: enumeration, representation, dissection, plane sections, intersection, iteration, motion, projection, and folding and unfolding. The book includes a selection of Challenges for each chapter with solutions, references and a complete index. The text is aimed at secondary school and college and university teachers as an introduction to solid geometry, as a supplement in problem solving sessions, as enrichment material in a course on proofs and mathematical reasoning, or in a mathematics course for liberal arts students.--

The authors present twenty icons of mathematics, that is, geometrical shapes such as the right triangle, the Venn diagram, and the yang and yin symbol and explore mathematical results associated with them. As with their previous books (Charming Proofs, When Less is More, Math Made Visual) proofs are visual whenever possible. The results require no more than high-school mathematics to appreciate and many of them will be new even to experienced readers. Besides theorems and proofs, the book contains many illustrations and it gives connections of the icons to the world outside of mathematics. There are also problems at the end of each chapter, with solutions provided in an appendix. The book could be used by students in courses in problem solving, mathematical reasoning, or mathematics for the liberal arts. It could also be read with pleasure by professional mathematicians, as it was by the members of the Dolciani editorial board, who unanimously recommend its publication.

Mathematics is a poem. It is a lucid, sensual, precise exposition of beautiful ideas directed to specific goals. It is worthwhile to have as broad a cross-section of mankind as possible be conversant with what goes on in mathematics. Just as everyone knows that the Internet is a powerful and important tool for communication, so everyone should know that the Poincaré conjecture gives us important information about the shape of our universe. Just as every responsible citizen realizes that the mass-production automobile was pioneered by Henry Ford, so everyone should know that the P/NP problem has implications for security and data manipulation that will affect everyone. This book endeavors to tell the story of the modern impact of mathematics, of its trials and triumphs and insights, in language that can be appreciated by a broad audience. It endeavors to show what mathematics means for our lives, how it impacts all of us, and what new thoughts it should cause us to entertain. It introduces new vistas of mathematical ideas and shares the excitement of new ideas freshly minted. It discusses the significance and impact of these ideas, and gives them meaning that will travel well and cause people to reconsider their place in the universe. Mathematics is one of mankind's oldest disciplines. Along with philosophy, it has shaped the very modus of human thought. And it continues to do so. To be unaware of modern mathematics is to miss out on a large slice of life. It is to be left out of essential modern developments. We want to address this point, and do something about it. This is a book to make mathematics exciting for people of all interests and all walks of life. Mathematics is exhilarating, it is ennobling, it is uplifting, and it is fascinating. We want to show people this part of our world, and to get them to travel new paths.

Take a wild and Wonderful Voyage Through the Universe of Mathematics! Just imagine how much fun it would be to explore the fourth dimension! Play baseball on an asteroid! Ride an alien bike with square wheels! Let Math Trek 2 take you on an intergalactic excursion as you master dizzying mathematical concepts on your home planet of Earth! While playing games and solving puzzles, you can explore mind-boggling mental mysteries and investigate hidden patterns in the universe. From strange number sequences and bizarre buckyballs to random walks, you’ll be amazed at the mathematical concepts you’ll soon comprehend. So let Math Trek 2 take you on a fantastic space odyssey where you can look for a pi in the sky, get stuck in galactic gridlock, and sail away to the planet of the shapes!

This self-contained encyclopedic monograph gives a detailed introduction to Bézout equations and stable ranks, encompassing and explaining needed topological, analytical, and algebraic tools and methods. Some of the highlights included are Carleson's corona theorem and the Bass, topological, and matricial stable ranks. The first volume focusses on topological structures, Banach algebras, and advanced function theory, thus preparing the stage for the algebraic structures in the second volume towards examining stable ranks with analytic methods. The main emphasis is laid on algebras of holomorphic functions. Often a new approach is presented or at least a different angle of sight, which makes the book attractive both for researchers and students interested in these active fields of research.

A brilliant tour of mathematical thought and a guide to becoming a better thinker, How Not to Be Wrong shows that math is not just a long list of rules to be learned and carried out by rote. Math touches everything we do; It's what makes the world make sense. Using the mathematician's methods and hard-won insights-minus the jargon-professor and popular columnist Jordan Ellenberg guides general readers through his ideas with rigor and lively irreverence, infusing everything from election results to baseball to the existence of God and the psychology of slime molds with a heightened sense of clarity and wonder. Armed with the tools of mathematics, we can see the hidden structures beneath the messy and chaotic surface of our daily lives. How Not to Be Wrong shows us how--Publisher's description.

Every time we download music, take a flight across the Atlantic or talk on our cell phones, we are relying on great mathematical inventions. In The Number Mysteries, one of our generation's foremost mathematicians Marcus du Sautoy offers a playful and accessible examination of numbers and how, despite efforts of the greatest minds, the most fundamental puzzles of nature remain unsolved. Du Sautoy tells about the quest to predict the future—from the flight of asteroids to an impending storm, from bending a ball like Beckham to forecasting population growth. He brings to life the beauty behind five mathematical puzzles that have contributed to our understanding of the world around us and have helped develop the technology to cope with it. With loads of games to play and puzzles to solve, this is a math book for everyone.

This volume offers a comprehensive overview of our understanding of gravity at both the experimental and the theoretical level. Critical reviews by experts cover topics ranging from astrophysics (anisotropies in the cosmic microwave background, gamma ray bursts, neutron stars and astroparticles), cosmology, the status of gravitational wave sources and detectors, verification of Newton's law at short distances, the equivalence principle, gravito-magnetism, measurement theory, time machines and the foundations of Einstein's theory, to string theory and loop quantum gravity.

This volume offers a comprehensive overview of our understanding of gravity at both the experimental and the theoretical level. Critical reviews by experts cover topics ranging from astrophysics (anisotropies in the cosmic microwave background, gamma ray bursts, neutron stars and astroparticles), cosmology, the status of gravitational wave sources and detectors, verification of Newton's law at short distances, the equivalence principle, gravito-magnetism, measurement theory, time machines and the foundations of Einstein's theory, to string theory and loop quantum gravity.