Why do card tricks work? How can magicians do astonishing feats of mathematics mentally? Why do stage "mind-reading" tricks work? As a rule, we simply accept these tricks and "magic" without recognizing that they are really demonstrations of strict laws based on probability, sets, number theory, topo... read more
The Moscow Puzzles: 359 Mathematical Recreations by Boris A. Kordemsky Most popular Russian puzzle book ever published. Brain teasers range from simple "catch" riddles to difficult problems. Lavishly illustrated. First English translation. Introduction. Solutions.
Mathematical Magic by William Simon Stimulating treasury of entertaining tricks, stunts, and magical effects based on such mathematical principles and ideas as magic squares, the Fibonacci Series, Moebius strips, cycloids, topology, and more.
The Stanford Mathematics Problem Book: With Hints and Solutions by G. Polya, J. Kilpatrick Based on Stanford University's well-known competitive exam, this excellent mathematics workbook offers students at both high school and college levels a complete set of problems, hints, and solutions. 1974 edition.
Prelude to Mathematics by W. W. Sawyer This lively, stimulating account of non-Euclidean geometry by a noted mathematician covers matrices, determinants, group theory, and many other related topics, with an emphasis on the subject's novel, striking aspects. 1955 edition.
Science Projects for Young People by George Barr More than 30 safe and entertaining experiments explain the scientific principles behind electricity and magnetism, light and color, water and air, sound and music, plants and animals, and much more.
Playing with Infinity by Rózsa Péter Popular account ranges from counting to mathematical logic and covers many concepts related to infinity: graphic representation of functions; pairings, other combinations; prime numbers; logarithms, circular functions; more. 216 illustrations.
The Red Book of Mathematical Problems by Kenneth S. Williams, Kenneth Hardy Handy compilation of 100 practice problems, hints, and solutions indispensable for students preparing for the William Lowell Putnam and other mathematical competitions. Preface to the First Edition. Sources. 1988 edition.
Mind-Boggling Word Puzzles by Martin Gardner, V.G. Myers A famous puzzlemeister presents 103 perplexing brainteasers, anagrams, and rebus and logic puzzles. There are clues — and humor — in the 69 whimsical illustrations, plus solutions for anyone who gets stumped.
Mental Magic: Surefire Tricks to Amaze Your Friends by Martin Gardner, Jeff Sinclair Professor Picanumba has dozens of surefire tricks up his sleeve — and he's willing to show junior mathemagicians how to predict the answers to 88 word and number challenges. Includes solutions and illustrations.
Mathematics for the Nonmathematician by Morris Kline Erudite and entertaining overview follows development of mathematics from ancient Greeks to present. Topics include logic and mathematics, the fundamental concept, differential calculus, probability theory, much more. Exercises and problems.
How to Calculate Quickly: Full Course in Speed Arithmetic by Henry Sticker Many useful procedures explained and taught: 2-column addition, left-to-right subtraction, mental division of large numbers, more. Also numerous helpful shortcuts. More than 8,000 problems, with solutions. 1945 edition.
Product Description:
Why do card tricks work? How can magicians do astonishing feats of mathematics mentally? Why do stage "mind-reading" tricks work? As a rule, we simply accept these tricks and "magic" without recognizing that they are really demonstrations of strict laws based on probability, sets, number theory, topology, and other branches of mathematics. This is the first book-length study of this fascinating branch of recreational mathematics. Written by one of the foremost experts on mathematical magic, it employs considerable historical data to summarize all previous work in this field. It is also a creative examination of laws and their exemplification, with scores of new tricks, insights, and demonstrations. Dozens of topological tricks are explained, and dozens of manipulation tricks are aligned with mathematical law. Nontechnical, detailed, and clear, this volume contains 115 sections discussing tricks with cards, dice, coins, etc.; topological tricks with handkerchiefs, cards, etc.; geometrical vanishing effects; demonstrations with pure numbers; and dozens of other topics. You will learn how a Moebius strip works and how a Curry square can "prove" that the whole is not equal to the sum of its parts. No skill at sleight of hand is needed to perform the more than 500 tricks described because mathematics guarantees their success. Detailed examination of laws and their application permits you to create your own problems and effects.
The worldwide mathematical community was saddened by the death of Martin Gardner on May 22, 2010. Martin was 95 years old when he died, and had written 70 or 80 books during his long lifetime as an author. Martin's first Dover books were published in 1956 and 1957: Mathematics, Magic and Mystery, one of the first popular books on the intellectual excitement of mathematics to reach a wide audience, and Fads and Fallacies in the Name of Science, certainly one of the first popular books to cast a devastatingly skeptical eye on the claims of pseudoscience and the many guises in which the modern world has given rise to it. Both of these pioneering books are still in print with Dover today along with more than a dozen other titles of Martin's books. They run the gamut from his elementary Codes, Ciphers and Secret Writing, which has been enjoyed by generations of younger readers since the 1980s, to the more demanding The New Ambidextrous Universe: Symmetry and Asymmetry from Mirror Reflections to Superstrings, which Dover published in its final revised form in 2005.
To those of us who have been associated with Dover for a long time, however, Martin was more than an author, albeit a remarkably popular and successful one. As a member of the small group of long-time advisors and consultants, which included NYU's Morris Kline in mathematics, Harvard's I. Bernard Cohen in the history of science, and MIT's J. P. Den Hartog in engineering, Martin's advice and editorial suggestions in the formative 1950s helped to define the Dover publishing program and give it the point of view which — despite many changes, new directions, and the consequences of evolution — continues to be operative today. In the Author's Own Words: "Politicians, real-estate agents, used-car salesmen, and advertising copy-writers are expected to stretch facts in self-serving directions, but scientists who falsify their results are regarded by their peers as committing an inexcusable crime. Yet the sad fact is that the history of science swarms with cases of outright fakery and instances of scientists who unconsciously distorted their work by seeing it through lenses of passionately held beliefs."
"A surprising proportion of mathematicians are accomplished musicians. Is it because music and mathematics share patterns that are beautiful?" — Martin Gardner
This book was printed in the United States of America.
Dover books are made to last a lifetime. Our US book-manufacturing partners produce the highest quality books in the world and they create jobs for our fellow citizens. Manufacturing in the United States also ensures that our books are printed in an environmentally friendly fashion, on paper sourced from responsibly managed forests.
