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Math Makers: The Lives and Works of 50 Famous Mathematicians
An entertaining history of mathematics as chronicled through fifty short biographies.
Mathematics today is the fruit of centuries of brilliant insights by men and women whose personalities and life experiences were often as extraordinary as their mathematical achievements. This entertaining history of mathematics chronicles those achievements through fifty short biographies that bring these great thinkers to life while making their contributions understandable to readers with little math background.
Among the fascinating characters profiled are Isaac Newton (1642-1727), the founder of classical physics and infinitesimal calculus--he frequently quarreled with fellow scientists and was obsessed by alchemy and arcane Bible interpretation; Sophie Germain (1776 - 1831), who studied secretly at the École Polytechnique in Paris, using the name of a previously enrolled male student--she is remembered for her work on Fermat's Last Theorem and on elasticity theory; Emmy Noether (1882 - 1935), whom Albert Einstein described as the most important woman in the history of mathematics--she made important contributions to abstract algebra and in physics she clarified the connection between conservation laws and symmetry; and Srinivasa Ramanujan (1887-1920), who came from humble origins in India and had almost no formal training, yet made substantial contributions to mathematical analysis, number theory, infinite series, and continued fractions.
The unusual behavior and life circumstances of these and many other intriguing personalities make for fascinating reading and a highly enjoyable introduction to mathematics.
Mathematics today is the fruit of centuries of brilliant insights by men and women whose personalities and life experiences were often as extraordinary as their mathematical achievements. This entertaining history of mathematics chronicles those achievements through fifty short biographies that bring these great thinkers to life while making their contributions understandable to readers with little math background.
Among the fascinating characters profiled are Isaac Newton (1642-1727), the founder of classical physics and infinitesimal calculus--he frequently quarreled with fellow scientists and was obsessed by alchemy and arcane Bible interpretation; Sophie Germain (1776 - 1831), who studied secretly at the École Polytechnique in Paris, using the name of a previously enrolled male student--she is remembered for her work on Fermat's Last Theorem and on elasticity theory; Emmy Noether (1882 - 1935), whom Albert Einstein described as the most important woman in the history of mathematics--she made important contributions to abstract algebra and in physics she clarified the connection between conservation laws and symmetry; and Srinivasa Ramanujan (1887-1920), who came from humble origins in India and had almost no formal training, yet made substantial contributions to mathematical analysis, number theory, infinite series, and continued fractions.
The unusual behavior and life circumstances of these and many other intriguing personalities make for fascinating reading and a highly enjoyable introduction to mathematics.
434 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 2, 2019
32 people are currently reading
144 people want to read
About the author
Alfred S. Posamentier
97 books31 followersAlfred S. Posamentier (born October 18, 1942) is among the most prominent American educators in the country and is a lead commentator on American math and science education, regularly contributing to The New York Times and other news publications. He has created original math and science curricula, emphasized the need for increased math and science funding, promulgated criteria by which to select math and science educators, advocated the importance of involving parents in K-12 math and science education, and provided myriad curricular solutions for teaching critical thinking in math.
Dr. Posamentier was a member of the New York State Education Commissioner’s Blue Ribbon Panel on the Math-A Regents Exams. He served on the Commissioner’s Mathematics Standards Committee, which redefined the Standards for New York State. And he currently serves on the New York City schools’ Chancellor’s Math Advisory Panel.
Posamentier earned a Ph.D. in mathematics education from Fordham University (1973), a Master’s degree in mathematics education from the City College of the City University of New York (1966) and an A.B. degree in mathematics from Hunter College of the City University of New York.
Posamentier was born in Manhattan in New York City, the son of Austrian immigrants. He has one daughter (Lisa, born in 1970), and one son (David, born in 1978). He resides in River Vale, New Jersey and is the current Dean of the School of Education and professor of mathematics education at Mercy College, New York. He was formerly professor of mathematics education and dean of the School of Education at The City College of the City University of New York, where he spent the previous 40 years.
Dr. Posamentier was a member of the New York State Education Commissioner’s Blue Ribbon Panel on the Math-A Regents Exams. He served on the Commissioner’s Mathematics Standards Committee, which redefined the Standards for New York State. And he currently serves on the New York City schools’ Chancellor’s Math Advisory Panel.
Posamentier earned a Ph.D. in mathematics education from Fordham University (1973), a Master’s degree in mathematics education from the City College of the City University of New York (1966) and an A.B. degree in mathematics from Hunter College of the City University of New York.
Posamentier was born in Manhattan in New York City, the son of Austrian immigrants. He has one daughter (Lisa, born in 1970), and one son (David, born in 1978). He resides in River Vale, New Jersey and is the current Dean of the School of Education and professor of mathematics education at Mercy College, New York. He was formerly professor of mathematics education and dean of the School of Education at The City College of the City University of New York, where he spent the previous 40 years.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
May 20, 2020
Math Makers reminds me of Men of Mathematics written by E T Bell. It contains biographies of fifty famous mathematicians that made progress in aiding our understanding of mathematics. I have heard of most of them, but only the men. This disappoints me since I thought I knew more about people in mathematics. Math Makers is written by Alfred S Posamentier and Christian Spreitzer. It is aimed at a general audience and focuses on their lives.
The book is organized chronologically, which draws another comparison to Bell’s book. It starts with people that might not have exclusively developed these theories. Take the Pythagorean Theorem for instance; it was developed independently in several different civilizations and the name is lost to the mists of time. Pythagoras could have even been some kind of charlatan who merely collected the results of those under his tutelage and hated beans. All we have for the earliest mathematicians are a series of conjectures and hearsay. The same applies to people like Euclid. It could be that he found all those conjectures and axioms, but it is more likely that he collected the findings of those before him and put it all together into his Elements.
The book also says which country the mathematician is from, so we can see where the center of research and mathematical ideas shifted and moved around over the years. This is especially true with the Brain Drain during World War II, where several leading mathematicians and scientists left their native countries and moved to the United States and Britain. On the other hand, most of the leading mathematicians are from Europe in this book. We have Leonhard Euler, Bernhard Riemann, Carl Friedrick Gauss, Georg Cantor, and so on.
Although it does mainly focus on their lives, it does cover a little bit of what they did for mathematics. For instance, with Georg Cantor, it talks about countable and uncountable infinities. With Galois, it talks about Galois Theory. With Issac Newton, it talks about his development of Calculus and how he was a terrible person.
So the book is arbitrary in who it chooses to leave in or leave out of its list, but having to reduce the list to 50 people is enough of a chore. All of the mathematicians in this book were deceased as of its time of printing.
All in all, the book did what it intended for me. It got me interested in some mathematicians that I hadn’t heard of before.
The book is organized chronologically, which draws another comparison to Bell’s book. It starts with people that might not have exclusively developed these theories. Take the Pythagorean Theorem for instance; it was developed independently in several different civilizations and the name is lost to the mists of time. Pythagoras could have even been some kind of charlatan who merely collected the results of those under his tutelage and hated beans. All we have for the earliest mathematicians are a series of conjectures and hearsay. The same applies to people like Euclid. It could be that he found all those conjectures and axioms, but it is more likely that he collected the findings of those before him and put it all together into his Elements.
The book also says which country the mathematician is from, so we can see where the center of research and mathematical ideas shifted and moved around over the years. This is especially true with the Brain Drain during World War II, where several leading mathematicians and scientists left their native countries and moved to the United States and Britain. On the other hand, most of the leading mathematicians are from Europe in this book. We have Leonhard Euler, Bernhard Riemann, Carl Friedrick Gauss, Georg Cantor, and so on.
Although it does mainly focus on their lives, it does cover a little bit of what they did for mathematics. For instance, with Georg Cantor, it talks about countable and uncountable infinities. With Galois, it talks about Galois Theory. With Issac Newton, it talks about his development of Calculus and how he was a terrible person.
So the book is arbitrary in who it chooses to leave in or leave out of its list, but having to reduce the list to 50 people is enough of a chore. All of the mathematicians in this book were deceased as of its time of printing.
All in all, the book did what it intended for me. It got me interested in some mathematicians that I hadn’t heard of before.
March 7, 2023
Math Men
Math Makers is an excellent book that delves into the lives and works of 50 famous mathematicians.
Posamentier's writing style is clear and concise, and he does a great job of bringing the personalities and accomplishments of each mathematician to life.
The book covers a wide range of mathematicians, from ancient Greek thinkers to modern-day geniuses.
Each chapter provides a brief biography of the mathematician and highlights their most important contributions to the field.
What I particularly enjoyed was how it showed the human side of these mathematical giants. Posamentier does a great job of exploring the personal struggles and quirks of each mathematician, which helps to make them more relatable and interesting.
Whether you're a math enthusiast or just looking for an engaging read, I highly recommend Math Makers.
It's a well-researched and informative book that will leave you with a newfound appreciation for the world of mathematics.
4.2/5
Math Makers is an excellent book that delves into the lives and works of 50 famous mathematicians.
Posamentier's writing style is clear and concise, and he does a great job of bringing the personalities and accomplishments of each mathematician to life.
The book covers a wide range of mathematicians, from ancient Greek thinkers to modern-day geniuses.
Each chapter provides a brief biography of the mathematician and highlights their most important contributions to the field.
What I particularly enjoyed was how it showed the human side of these mathematical giants. Posamentier does a great job of exploring the personal struggles and quirks of each mathematician, which helps to make them more relatable and interesting.
Whether you're a math enthusiast or just looking for an engaging read, I highly recommend Math Makers.
It's a well-researched and informative book that will leave you with a newfound appreciation for the world of mathematics.
4.2/5
January 15, 2021
Each chapter details the life and contributions of an important mathematician, although with less explication of the more complex mathematics, and very centred on European mathematicians.
June 21, 2021
Good overview of the lives of specific mathematicians, but the author's desire to not delve into difficult mathematics leaves useful discoveries—like most of calculus—unmentioned.
June 16, 2023
It was ok, but could have used much less blah blah, more math, and zero "oppression" narratives.
Read
December 29, 2023I loved it all the way to Descartes. (Then I got bored.) They showed me beautiful math concepts and of course I love Descartes.
March 4, 2020
"Fifty short biographies of mathematicians are here arranged chronologically by birth year. These range from Thales to Maryam Mirzakhani, the first woman and the first Iranian to be awarded the Fields Medal. Written to be engaging and entertaining, the material is not dry like an encyclopedia entry or focused on expected facts like a Wikipedia article. These overviews are meant to interest a reader, particularly a young adult fostering an interest in a mathematics. ..."
[Look for my entire review at MAA Reviews]
[Look for my entire review at MAA Reviews]
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews