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Loading... A Concise History of Mathematics: Fourth Revised Edition (Dover Books on Mathematics) (original 1948; edition 1987)by Dirk J. Struik (Author)
Work InformationA Concise History of Mathematics by Dirk J. Struik (1948)
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Belongs to Publisher SeriesAula-boeken (195) — 1 more
This compact, well-written history covers major mathematical ideas and techniques from the ancient Near East to 20th-century computer theory, surveying the works of Archimedes, Pascal, Gauss, Hilbert, and many others. "The author's ability as a first-class historian as well as an able mathematician has enabled him to produce a work which is unquestionably one of the best." -- Nature. No library descriptions found. |
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)510.09Natural sciences and mathematics Mathematics General Mathematics MathematicsLC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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Since the book is rather short, it is prudently supported with a considerable bibliographic apparatus. A general bibliography constitutes the bulk of the introduction, and a more topical bibliography is appended to each of the eight chronological chapters. A full index of names helps make the volume useful for reference.
I have not had any formal study of mathematics since my undergraduate days, although I like to challenge myself periodically by reading math books that exceed my training. This one actually qualifies. Although it is primarily a history book, it constantly alludes to mathematical topics far in advance of what an accomplished college freshman calculus student is likely to have encountered. Even so, the book remained intelligible to me for the most part.
Author Struik goes some way toward offering ideas about how social and political circumstances impacted the development of mathematical ideas and techniques. He also remarks historical parallels in particular schools and periods of activity. The prose is fairly dry, but an effort is made to communicate the personalities of key mathematicians.
This read has sufficiently stoked my mathematical enthusiasm that I will be reading some actual math texts quite soon.