Beyond Numeracy: Ruminations of a Numbers Man

The small, bite-size artciles are insightful, clear and an example of what popularizing mathematics should be like; Fun to read as it was to write. I use selected chapters in my community college lectures.

From John Allen Paulos, author of the widely praised best-seller Innumeracy and the country's best explainer of things mathematical, a delightful -- and enriching -- exploration of the beauty and fascination of numbers.
Part dictionary, part amusement, Beyond Numeracy is nothing less than a crash course in clear thinking about mathematics. Paulos continues his efforts to whet our appetite for mathematics, curing math terror and showing us that we often know more than we think we do (many who credit their insights to "logic" or "common sense" have been thinking math all their lives without realizing it).
Beyond Numeracy presents in engrossing fashion a broad range of mathematical concepts, from the basic to the advanced, that have show more transformed our civilization. Topics range from algebra, coincidence, game theory, non-Euclidian geometry, calculus, and probability theory to such new areas of mathematics as chaos, fractals, recursion, and complexity. Paulos's conversational style and droll musings throughout render mathematics both less daunting and far more accessible.
"A widespread misconception about mathematics," writes the author, "is that it is completely hierarchical -- first arithmetic, then algebra, then calculus, then more abstraction, then whatever... This belief in the totem pole nature of mathematics isn't true, but it prevents many people who did poorly in seventh-grade, high school, or even college mathematics from picking up a popular book on the subject. Often very ""advanced"" mathematical ideas are more intuitive and comprehensible than are certain areas of elementary algebra.""
In demystifying the subject, Paulos examines topics chosen to both entertain and educate. For example:-
-- We learn what the mathematical basis of coincidence is in part by addressing the question of how many intermediates it takes to link two strangers sitting together on an airplane. (Ninety-nine times out of 100 they will be linked by two or fewer.)
-- We master in simple terms what chaos theory is by coming to see why the U.S Postal Service, the human circulatory system, and the local ecology are all subject to unpredictable variation.
-- We understand better the number pi when the author poses -- and discusses -- this question: If a string is tied around the equator, how much extra string would have to be added so that the extended string would be one foot about the earth's surface all around the equator. (The answer is a little more than six feet).
All these inquiries share a common purpose -- to help us understand the thinking behind the solution, to illustrate how the numerate mind operates. Mathematical literacy is now essential. Happily, Beyond Numeracy will enable all readers to achieve that goal and to see the world and everyday events in it in a fresh way. show less

Like E.D. Hirsch, but for math. It's an interesting view about what math should be in people's lives, but Paulos strikes me as a mathematician who can write a bit, not an educator.

The other day I happen to start talking to my Mother about Field Theory. We were not sure of the difference between a field and a group. We were on a picnic, but I had a copy "Beyond Numeracy" with me. Sure enough there is a chapter on group theory and it answered our questions.

This book is wonderful to travel with. The chapters are short and interesting. Great reading when you have an hour to kill in the airport. No matter how much or how little Math you know, you are sure to learn something from this book and be entertained in the process.

I’m becoming less enamored of his writing. His books are very duplicative. It’s like I’ve paid three times for the same book.

(Full review at my blog)

An uncommon dictionary of mathematics