In high school, Julia Bowman stood alone as the only girl - and the best student - in the junior and senior math classes. She had only one close friend and no boyfriends. Although she was to learn that there are such people as mathematicians, her ambition was merely to get a job teaching mathematics in high school. At great sacrifice, her widowed stepmother sent her to the University of California at Berkeley. But at Berkeley, in a society of mathematicians, she discovered herself. There was also a prince at Berkeley, a brilliant young assistant professor named Raphael Robinson. Theirs was to be a marriage that would endure until her death in 1985. Julia is the story of Julia Bowman Robinson, the gifted and highly original mathematician who during her lifetime was recognized in ways that no other woman mathematician had ever been recognized. This unusual book brings together in one volume the prize winning Autobiography of Julia Robinson by her sister, the popular mathematical biographer Constance Reid, and three very personal articles about her work by outstanding mathematical colleagues.

This volume presents all the published works -- spanning more than thirty years -- of Julia Bowman Robinson. These papers constitute important contributions to the theory of effectively calculable functions and to its applications. Outstanding among the latter are Robinson's proof of the effective unsolvability of the decision problem for the rational number field (and, consequently of that for the first-order theory of all fields), and her work that provided the central step toward the negative solution of Hilbert's Tenth Problem. These results provide upper bound for what one can hope to obtain in the way of positive solutions to the decision problem for special classes of fields and for special classes of diophantine equations, respectively. Besides thematic unity, Robinson's papers are distinguished by their clarity of purpose and accessibility to non-specialists as well as specialists. The volume also includes an extensive biographical memoir on the life and work of Robinson, who will be remembered not only for her distinctive and vital contributions, but also as the first woman to be elected to the mathematical section of the National Academy of Sciences and as the first woman to be President of the American Mathematical Society.

An exploration of the hidden human, emotional, and social dimensions of mathematics Mathematics is often thought of as the coldest expression of pure reason. But few subjects provoke hotter emotions—and inspire more love and hatred—than mathematics. And although math is frequently idealized as floating above the messiness of human life, its story is nothing if not human; often, it is all too human. Loving and Hating Mathematics is about the hidden human, emotional, and social forces that shape mathematics and affect the experiences of students and mathematicians. Written in a lively, accessible style, and filled with gripping stories and anecdotes, Loving and Hating Mathematics brings home the intense pleasures and pains of mathematical life. These stories challenge many myths, including the notions that mathematics is a solitary pursuit and a "young man's game," the belief that mathematicians are emotionally different from other people, and even the idea that to be a great mathematician it helps to be a little bit crazy. Reuben Hersh and Vera John-Steiner tell stories of lives in math from their very beginnings through old age, including accounts of teaching and mentoring, friendships and rivalries, love affairs and marriages, and the experiences of women and minorities in a field that has traditionally been unfriendly to both. Included here are also stories of people for whom mathematics has been an immense solace during times of crisis, war, and even imprisonment—as well as of those rare individuals driven to insanity and even murder by an obsession with math. This is a book for anyone who wants to understand why the most rational of human endeavors is at the same time one of the most emotional.

Sophie Germain taught herself mathematics by candlelight, huddled in her bedclothes. Ada Byron Lovelace anticipated aspects of general-purpose digital computing by more than a century. Cora Ratto de Sadosky advanced messages of tolerance and equality while sharing her mathematical talents with generations of students. This captivating book gives voice to women mathematicians from the late eighteenth century through to the present day. It documents the complex nature of the conditions women around the world have faced--and continue to face--while pursuing their careers in mathematics. The stories of the three women above and those of many more appear here, each one enlightening and inspiring. The earlier parts of the book provide historical context and perspective, beginning with excursions into the lives of fifteen women born before 1920. Included are histories of collective efforts to improve women's opportunities in research mathematics. In addition, a photo essay puts a human face on the subject as it illustrates women's contributions in professional associations. More than eighty women from academe, government, and the private sector provide a rich mélange of insights and strategies for creating workable career paths while maintaining rewarding personal lives. The book discusses related social and cultural issues, and includes a summary of recent comparative data relating to women and men in mathematics and women from other sciences. First-person accounts provide explicit how-tos; many narratives demonstrate great determination and perseverance. Talented women vividly portray their pleasure in discovering new mathematics. The senior among them speak out candidly, interweaving their mathematics with autobiographical detail. At the beginning of a new century, women at all stages of their careers share their outlooks and experiences. Clear, engaging, and meticulously researched, Complexities will inspire young women who are contemplating careers in mathematics and will speak to women in many fields of endeavor and walks of life.

Looks at the history of mathematical discoveries and the lives of great mathematicians.

A New York Times bestseller John Urschel, mathematician and former offensive lineman for the Baltimore Ravens, tells the story of a life balanced between two passions For John Urschel, what began as an insatiable appetite for puzzles as a child developed into mastery of the elegant systems and rules of mathematics. By the time he was thirteen, Urschel was auditing a college-level calculus course. But when he joined his high school football team, a new interest began to eclipse the thrill he felt in the classroom. Football challenged Urschel in an entirely different way, and he became addicted to the physical contact of the sport. After he accepted a scholarship to play at Penn State, his love of math was rekindled. As a Nittany Lion, he refused to sacrifice one passion for the other. Against the odds, Urschel found a way to manage his double life as a scholar and an athlete. While he was an offensive lineman for the Baltimore Ravens, he simultaneously pursued his PhD in mathematics at MIT. Weaving together two separate narratives, Urschel relives for us the most pivotal moments of his bifurcated life. He explains why, after Penn State was sanctioned for the acts of former coach Jerry Sandusky, he declined offers from prestigious universities and refused to abandon his team. He describes his parents’ different influences and their profound effect on him, and he opens up about the correlation between football and CTE and the risks he took for the game he loves. Equally at home discussing Georg Cantor’s work on infinities and Bill Belichick’s playbook, Urschel reveals how each challenge—whether on the field or in the classroom—has brought him closer to understanding the two different halves of his own life, and how reason and emotion, the mind and the body, are always working together. “So often, people want to divide the world into two,” he observes. “Matter and energy. Wave and particle. Athlete and mathematician. Why can’t something (or someone) be both?”

Plain-language explanations and a rich set of supporting material help students understand the mathematical concepts and techniques of astronomy.