Mathematics opens new doors to the amazing world of maths. Telling the exciting story from a historical perspective, it shows how mathematical science advanced through the discoveries of the ancient Babylonians, Egyptians and Greeks, the great scholars of medieval Islam and Europe, and the Renaissance and the birth of the Scientific Revolution. From the simplest concepts of numbers and arithmetic, geometry and algebra, trigonometry and calculus, right through to infinity and chaos theory, Mathematics introduces and explains the most important concepts in accessible, non-technical language.

When do the hands of a clock coincide? How likely is it that two children in the same class will share a birthday? Should you play Roulette or the Lottery? How do we calculate the volume of a doughnut? Why does the android Data in Star Trek lose at poker? What is Fibonacci's Rabbit Problem? Many things in the world have a mathematical side to them, as revealed by the puzzles and questions in this book. It is written for anyone who is curious about mathematics and would like a simple and entertaining account of what it can do. Peter Higgins provides clear explanations of the more mysterious features of childhood mathematics as well as novelties and connections to prove that mathematics can be enjoyable and full of surprises.

Where did math come from? Who thought up all those algebra symbols, and why? What is the story behind π π? … negative numbers? … the metric system? … quadratic equations? … sine and cosine? … logs? The 30 independent historical sketches in Math through the Ages answer these questions and many others in an informal, easygoing style that is accessible to teachers, students, and anyone who is curious about the history of mathematical ideas. Each sketch includes Questions and Projects to help you learn more about its topic and to see how the main ideas fit into the bigger picture of history. The 30 short stories are preceded by a 58-page bird's-eye overview of the entire panorama of mathematical history, a whirlwind tour of the most important people, events, and trends that shaped the mathematics we know today. “What to Read Next” and reading suggestions after each sketch provide starting points for readers who want to learn more. This book is ideal for a broad spectrum of audiences, including students in history of mathematics courses at the late high school or early college level, pre-service and in-service teachers, and anyone who just wants to know a little more about the origins of mathematics.

Who invented beds? When did we start cleaning our teeth? How old are wine and beer? Which came first: the toilet seat or toilet paper? What was the first clock? Every day, from the moment our alarm clock wakes us in the morning until our head hits our pillow at night, we all take part in rituals that are millennia old. Structured around one ordinary day, A Million Years in a Day reveals the astonishing origins and development of the daily practices we take for granted. In this gloriously entertaining romp through human history, Greg Jenner explores the gradual—and often unexpected—evolution of our daily routines. This is not a story of wars, politics, or great events. Instead, Jenner has scoured Roman rubbish bins, Egyptian tombs, and Victorian sewers to bring us the most intriguing, surprising, and sometimes downright silly historical nuggets from our past. Drawn from across the world, spanning a million years of humanity, this book is a smorgasbord of historical delights. It is a history of all those things you always wondered about—and many you have never considered. It is the story of your life, one million years in the making.

Could we solve queuing with an equation? How do algorithms control our news? What is the secret behind encryption codes? Mathematics is inescapable. Wherever you go, whatever you do, however you live your life, mathematics plays a role. From controlling a city’s traffic to finding love, spending money online to building a skyscraper, the mathematics at play in our world is fascinating. Yet despite its ubiquity, for many of us, how the maths of today really works remains complex. Timothy Revell distils these complexities in this essential guide to modern-day mathematics. Along the way we discover how social media trends work, why the universe has a favourite number and what this means for you. Man vs Maths shows you how understanding a little more mathematics can help improve your life.

Vedic Mathematics for School offers a fresh and easy approach to learning mathematics. The system was reconstructed from ancient Vedic sources by the late Bharati Krsna Tirthaji earlier this century and is based on a small collection of sutras. Each sutra briefly encapsulates a rule of mental working, a principle or guiding maxim. Through simple practice of these methods all may become adept and efficient at mathematics. Book I of the series is intended for primary schools in which many of the fundamental concepts of mathematics are introduced. It has been written from the classroom experience of teaching Vedic mathematics to eight and nine years-old. At this age a few of the Vedic methods are used, the rest being introduced at a later stage.

Prize-winning study traces the rise of the vector concept from the discovery of complex numbers through the systems of hypercomplex numbers to the final acceptance around 1910 of the modern system of vector analysis.