John Martineau

A recommendation coming from the unlikeliest of places – Paul McCartney in his autobiographical The Lyrics – John Martineau's A Little Book of Coincidence in the Solar System is a brief introduction to a number of geometrical and mathematical symmetries and harmonies that occur in planetary orbits and other astronomical features.

After Beatle Paul's recommendation, I was disappointed that there was not too much on the musical front; Martineau mentions how various 'coincidences' track show more across to musical notation, but 'the music of the spheres' is only addressed briefly. Instead, the geometrical patterns of planetary orbits and various mathematical curiosities which emerge (Fibonacci sequences, the Golden Ratio, etc.) form the bulk of the content. The book is short and sweet at barely more than 50 pages (including illustrations), and doesn't really go into any of the points it raises.

That said, it is consistently fascinating to think on the coincidences that occur and, as Martineau says as early as page 2, begin to wonder whether it is coincidence – or perhaps design. A note of disquiet is produced in the book when it begins to lean more towards the New Age type of nonsense rather than solid mathematical rigour ("clear evidence of very ancient magic," Martineau writes on page 30, in his most overt blunder on this front), but thankfully the book stays sensible for the most part. It does leave the reader a little wary, however.

Towards the end of the book, Martineau remarks how these symmetries and harmonies don't seem to exist in other star systems (pg. 38), but that here, on "a planet of conscious observers", they do (pg. 52). He ends by saying what we're all thinking at that point: "Does it in some way have something to do with 'why we are here'?" (pg. 54). While the sceptical side of me wants to remind myself that you can find patterns in anything if you look long enough, and that there may be confirmation bias at work, other mathematical patterns which aren't reflected in the planets, the fact remains that these 'coincidences' do exist and are verifiable. Despite myself, I did find in reading A Little Book of Coincidence in the Solar System that I was unapologetically thrilled by the thought of a hidden hand coding the universe, and how one day the meaning of that might be unlocked. show less

I was both fascinated and frustrated by this book. I found much of it interesting, but each topic went from simple to complex quickly, and I needed to read it more slowly to absorb more. The book is has written explanations on the left-side page and illustrations on the right. Often, the illustrations would've been easier to make out if they'd been printed on larger paper: sometimes the captions were too small for me to read even with reading glasses on. But if the point was to pique my show more curiosity about the Quadrivium, it succeeded: I'd love to understand this better. show less

A new look at an old subject, the application of geometry to cosmology and some speculations about what used to be called "the music of the spheres". "Is there a secret structure hidden in the Solar System?" asks the blurb-writer. Anyone who isn't convinced that current science has the answer to everything might well ask the same question after reading this.

A really interesting book that notes mathematical patterns in the orbit of bodies in our solar system. Quite the interesting little book for anyone who likes patterns like this. I was really fascinated by the number of connections to the Golden Mean in the relation of Venus, Mercury and Earth.