Mathmatters: The Hidden Calculations of Everyday Life

by Chris Waring

Mathmatters is a humorous guide to the hidden calculations that are essential to everything we do. From making a cup of coffee to negotiating traffic to selecting candidates for an interview, we can't make it through the day without employing some essential mathematics. Did you know that there are some serious calculations involved in making the perfect cup of coffee? That an understanding of Braess's paradox will mean you can remain calm about road closures on your commute as they may make your journey faster? Or that your online shopping habit can teach you about game theory? Full of easy-to-understand mathematics and fun, if not entirely helpful, illustrations, Mathmatters is your essential guide to understanding the rules and measures that surround us every day, and determine the outcome of every move we make, every button we press and much of our decision-making, whether we are aware of it or not. Perfect • math nerds • readers of fun reference, trivia

192 pages, Hardcover

Published November 1, 2022

Reviews

[Noah de Campos Neto · Rating 2 out of 5]

2,5 stars.
I thought this book would present me with new cool facts but it felt like reading a long math test. Some equations were interesting but most of it was just basic math and using “daily occurrences” to explain them. To be honest a lot felt pretty far fetched but it read easily though.

[Pabloalfaro · Rating 2 out of 5]

A mí me ha resultado un poco aburrido. Pero se lo daría a leer a mi primo cuando me pregunta para qué sirven las mates.

[Ashleigh Fung · Rating 2 out of 5]

I fear I am not the target audience for this book. It is interesting but assumes only high school level maths knowledge so it was a bit boring

[Ahmed Tebourbi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mathmatters is a short-read that tells us about the math hidden calculations behind our everyday life.
I bought this book from the London science museum and I'll admit, I was very skeptical about it, until I've read and I've actually enjoyed learning the calculations done throughout the book that included simple mathematics.
I recommend this book for people who are fond of math with a highschool level knowledge of it. It only took 2 days for me to complete it so I can promise you it won't feel like a complete waste of time.

[Firat Fidan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Açıkçası beklentim çok daha yüksekti ama yine de hızlıca okunacak ve bir kaç bilgi öğrenebileceğiniz bir kitap. Matematiği çok seven biri olarak ben de gündelik hayatımızda matematiğin sürekli önümüze çıktığını savunanlardanım. Bu kitap da bize sabah kalkıp akşam yattığımız sürece kadar matematiği kullandığımız yerleri örneklerle açıklamış. Zaman geçirmek için okunabilir. (6/10)

[Tomás · Rating 2 out of 5]

Me salió "gratis" porque lo compré con el Bono Cultural y la verdad es que menos mal que lo hice, el libro si bien plantea cuestiones de interés cotidiano, lo siento demasiado infantil. Estéticamente está conseguido y la estructura de los capítulos es original cuanto menos. Considero sin embargo que el mayor fallo que tiene el libro es caer de sobremanera en recursos humorísticos; es un libro sobre matemáticas y parece que el rigor matemático brillara por su ausencia. Lógicamente los cálculos y los axiomas desde los que parte son ciertos (faltaría más), con esto me quería referir a que desentona mucho; en vez de meterte en la mentalidad "aprendizaje divertido" termina metiéndote en la de "vergüenza ajena matemática".

Resumidamente, sólo lo recomendaría si fueras un chaval recién entrado en la ESO y quisieras empezar a leer sobre matemáticas, en cualquier otro caso, este no es tu libro.