During WWII, Japan's navy relied on secret codes to communicate battle plans. By early 1942, US experts had cracked the code. The Japanese had planned a surprise attack on US Navy ships, but now the Americans knew the attack was coming. They turned the tables on the enemy and won a decisive victory.Math has always been key to warfare. Scientists use mathematical calculations to understand how missiles fly, or how to build faster airplanes. Soldiers in battle use math to figure out how to hit a particular target. From making sure an army has enough supplies to recording casualties and damage, discover how math and calculations lie at the heart of warfare!
A STEM book on math, this is a quick little read involving math in things ranging from the Enigma machine to the trajectory of a projectile to maps for troop movements. Simple but a good introduction to real life military applications of math.
While simplistic due to being a middle or elementary school book, I leaned from this one and would pick up others in the series, if they are available at the library. I found the history and techniques behind the codes and ciphers to be quite interesting.
Burrows, Terry Codes, Ciphers, and Cartography: Math Goes to War, 48 pages. NON-FICTION. Lerner, 2018. $20.
This book features historical information about the development of navigation, codes, code breaking, ballistics, logistics, and more –all how they relate to war and how math was the driving force for the development of those technologies. It includes charts, maps, diagrams, photographs, and interesting fact blurbs.
This is an absolutely fascinating book. I have a large group of students who have checked out every war book they can get their hands on, and this would be a great addition as it’s not just history but throws math into the mix. The only complication in adding this to your library is whether to put it in the math books or the history books. Add this if you have students with an interest in war.