Maths Squared

by Marianne Freiberger, Rachel Thomas

100 Concepts you should know

From Pythagoras' theorem end Einstein's relativity theory to Euclidean geometry and the butterfly effect - mathematics provides a whole new language with which we can recognise and describe the hidden patterns of our universe.

Maths Squared is a perfect introduction to the mysterious and magical world of numbers, taking you on a whistlestop tour from the essentials of arithmetic to the fascinating outer limits where mathematics and philosophy merge. With 10 topics across 10 chapters, each accompanied by explanatory illustrations, Maths Squared is the ideal primer for those who want to learn more about the language of numbers.

Genres: Nonfiction, Mathematics, Science

256 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2016

Reviews

[Vanessa · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you watch Bob's Burgers, or maybe even if you don't, you'll understand what I mean when I say this book was my doody buddy. Me and math having quality facilities time, just like Louise and Kuchi Kopi.

Or as expressed by Bayes Theorem:

P(A|B)=P(A) x P(B|A)/P(B)

There is a 57.3% chance you've already stopped reading.

I've got this book off of the Barnes & Noble discount table, and I've got the crimson and cream bargain-priced sticker still attached to prove it. I have always sucked at math (other than trigonometry, oddly) and this has always vexed me. This book refreshed some mathematical concepts, introduced others, other chapters were complete white noise. I think I know less about calculus now than when I started.

Each concept is accompanied by a diagram. If you are rusty or hopeless at math, you'll get something out of this but your mileage may vary.

[Bob Dunbar · Rating 3 out of 5]

I bought this book because I'm fairly innumerate and I like the "ideas in an instant" format. Basically, concepts like Bayes' Rule, Chaos Theory, Limits, Chaos, etc., are summarized on facing pages with text on the left and a key diagram on the right. Unfortunately, you can't easily summarize complicated concepts on two small pages. Some of the summaries work okay; others totally fail. It's still an interesting and attractive book, but don't expect it to make you a math whiz or anything close!

[Philip · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m finishing my sophomore year as a math undergrad, so a lot of the concepts in this book were completely new to me. The coverage of each topic is very shallow considering each one got a page of explanation, but it makes for a fun introduction! Could be frustrating for a reader with more experience in math, but otherwise I think most people interested in the subject would find it quite entertaining.

[Samuel Melo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fills it's purpose as a catalogue.

[Wout]

fun:)