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Mathematics Elsewhere: An Exploration of Ideas Across Cultures
Mathematics Elsewhere is a fascinating and important contribution to a global view of mathematics. Presenting mathematical ideas of peoples from a variety of small-scale and traditional cultures, it humanizes our view of mathematics and expands our conception of what is mathematical.Through engaging examples of how particular societies structure time, reach decisions about the future, make models and maps, systematize relationships, and create intriguing figures, Marcia Ascher demonstrates that traditional cultures have mathematical ideas that are far more substantial and sophisticated than is generally acknowledged. Malagasy divination rituals, for example, rely on complex algebraic algorithms. And some cultures use calendars far more abstract and elegant than our own. Ascher also shows that certain concepts assumed to be universal--that time is a single progression, for instance, or that equality is a static relationship--are not. The Basque notion of equivalence, for example, is a dynamic and temporal one not adequately captured by the familiar equal sign. Other ideas taken to be the exclusive province of professionally trained Western mathematicians are, in fact, shared by people in many societies.The ideas discussed come from geographically varied cultures, including the Borana and Malagasy of Africa, the Tongans and Marshall Islanders of Oceania, the Tamil of South India, the Basques of Western Europe, and the Balinese and Kodi of Indonesia.This book belongs on the shelves of mathematicians, math students, and math educators, and in the hands of anyone interested in traditional societies or how people think. Illustrating how mathematical ideas play a vital role in diverse human endeavors from navigation to social interaction to religion, it offers--through the vehicle of mathematics--unique cultural encounters to any reader.
224 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 5, 2002
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
February 23, 2024
I found out about this book in the endnotes of David Graeber's final book, The Dawn of Everything.
This is a great book that shows how mathematics is used in the daily life of many people around the world. As Ascher wrote, many cultures don't even think of mathematics as a distinct concept and has no word for it in their language. However, the way they live their lives shows the use of very complex mathematical ideas. To them, math is a living part of everyday culture and not something you study from a textbook in a classroom (although the concepts discussed in this book would go over well in a classroom as a way to introduce certain mathematical ideas. I know I would have definitely enjoyed learning about the sikidy divination system and trying it out in classes along with a basic interpretation of the results). Along with sikidy, I was most fascinated with the discussion of the Mayan and Balinese calendars, the Marshall Islands stick charts, and the Basque rotation of duties and obligations - in fact, all the examples are very interesting.
The concepts are also explained in typical mathematical formulas but you can skip these like I did - I didn't have the patience to go through them and it's been a while since I formally studied mathematics anyway.
It's kind of sad to see that Marcia Ascher died in 2013 but it seems she lived quite a full life and I am grateful to her for writing this book.
This is a great book that shows how mathematics is used in the daily life of many people around the world. As Ascher wrote, many cultures don't even think of mathematics as a distinct concept and has no word for it in their language. However, the way they live their lives shows the use of very complex mathematical ideas. To them, math is a living part of everyday culture and not something you study from a textbook in a classroom (although the concepts discussed in this book would go over well in a classroom as a way to introduce certain mathematical ideas. I know I would have definitely enjoyed learning about the sikidy divination system and trying it out in classes along with a basic interpretation of the results). Along with sikidy, I was most fascinated with the discussion of the Mayan and Balinese calendars, the Marshall Islands stick charts, and the Basque rotation of duties and obligations - in fact, all the examples are very interesting.
The concepts are also explained in typical mathematical formulas but you can skip these like I did - I didn't have the patience to go through them and it's been a while since I formally studied mathematics anyway.
It's kind of sad to see that Marcia Ascher died in 2013 but it seems she lived quite a full life and I am grateful to her for writing this book.
May 29, 2014
Mathematics Elsewhere: An Exploration of Ideas Across Cultures
Have you ever been told, directly or indirectly, that you are ‘not good’ at math? Maybe you concluded this yourself, based on past experiences. Whether this applies to you or not, Marcia Ascher’s book “Mathematics Elsewhere” represents an excellent reading experience in mathematics. Yes, really. You see, mathematics is much more than equations, theorems, and formulas; there is the human aspect of it. So for example, if we were to watch some people who are predicting the future, or making designs by pouring rice powder on the threshold of their houses, and if we asked them to explain the mathematics involved in such processes, most of those people would tell us they do not have a mathematical explanation for what they do. We might conclude that people engaged in such activities are ‘not good at math’, but this is where the beauty of Ascher’s work comes out. She explains different scenarios of people predicting the future, creating maps out of sticks, organizing family events based on relationships, making designs with rice powder, and more. Then she explains how mathematics is involved in each process. Her writing style is clear and understandable, and she describes mathematical ideas with informal terms and a minimum of technical jargon. By the end of each chapter, you are reading about mathematics that is often quite advanced, and you can make sense of it from Ascher’s informal explanations. In summary, I highly recommend this book, though I would also like to make a few comments about reading it. For starters, keep in mind that this is NOT a mathematics textbook that is full of formulas, theorems, and so on. The idea is to enjoy mathematics informally and not feel you must be memorizing stuff. Second, as you read the book, you do not have to try to work out the details of every mathematical statement; you can focus on Ascher’s general descriptions of each item and you will get the basic idea of what the mathematics is about. Again, the intention of her book is for you the reader to enjoy the human aspect of mathematics.
Have you ever been told, directly or indirectly, that you are ‘not good’ at math? Maybe you concluded this yourself, based on past experiences. Whether this applies to you or not, Marcia Ascher’s book “Mathematics Elsewhere” represents an excellent reading experience in mathematics. Yes, really. You see, mathematics is much more than equations, theorems, and formulas; there is the human aspect of it. So for example, if we were to watch some people who are predicting the future, or making designs by pouring rice powder on the threshold of their houses, and if we asked them to explain the mathematics involved in such processes, most of those people would tell us they do not have a mathematical explanation for what they do. We might conclude that people engaged in such activities are ‘not good at math’, but this is where the beauty of Ascher’s work comes out. She explains different scenarios of people predicting the future, creating maps out of sticks, organizing family events based on relationships, making designs with rice powder, and more. Then she explains how mathematics is involved in each process. Her writing style is clear and understandable, and she describes mathematical ideas with informal terms and a minimum of technical jargon. By the end of each chapter, you are reading about mathematics that is often quite advanced, and you can make sense of it from Ascher’s informal explanations. In summary, I highly recommend this book, though I would also like to make a few comments about reading it. For starters, keep in mind that this is NOT a mathematics textbook that is full of formulas, theorems, and so on. The idea is to enjoy mathematics informally and not feel you must be memorizing stuff. Second, as you read the book, you do not have to try to work out the details of every mathematical statement; you can focus on Ascher’s general descriptions of each item and you will get the basic idea of what the mathematics is about. Again, the intention of her book is for you the reader to enjoy the human aspect of mathematics.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews