Mathematics was only one area of interest for Gerolamo Cardano ― the sixteenth-century astrologer, philosopher, and physician was also a prolific author and inveterate gambler. Gambling led Cardano to the study of probability, and he was the first writer to recognize that random events are governed by mathematical laws. Published posthumously in 1663, Cardano's Liber de ludo aleae (Book on Games of Chance) is often considered the major starting point of the study of mathematical probability. The Italian scholar formulated some of the field's basic ideas more than a century before the better-known correspondence of Pascal and Fermat. Although his book had no direct influence on other early thinkers about probability, it remains an important antecedent to later expressions of the science's tenets.

On the trail of a vicious criminal, agent Chance Mackenzie found the perfect bait for his trap: Sunny Miller. So Chance made himself the only man she could trust—and then arranged for her long-missing father to find out about them. What Chance hadn't foreseen was that Sunny had reasons of her own for hiding from her father—and now Chance's deception had brought them both one step closer to the end of everything they held dear.…

Harness the power of your own personal winning cycle. Using easy-to-master techniques based on the prinicples of astrology, numerology, and biorhythms, discover when the odds are in your favor and when they're not. Kenneth Dickkerson, columnist for The Lottery News, has developed a remarkable, easy-to-master system that can work on casino gambling, bingo, sweepstakes, slots, racing, the game of the week, and daily numbers. With his help, you can discover your lucky numbers, lucky day, and seize that all-important edge that will make you a big winner at games of chance.

It’s almost impossible to imagine spending eight months at sea “without once putting foot on land.” But that’s exactly what whalers experienced when playing the dangerous “game of chance,” hunting down leviathans for oil and bone—all for a “lay,” or share, of the vessel’s spoils. A Game of Chance is the first comprehensive, in-depth study of British North American South Seas whaling. Author Andrea Kirkpatrick takes readers on a series of fascinating and sometimes fantastical journeys as she chronicles in great detail the story of a largely forgotten industry that operated out of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick ports from the 1760s to 1850. Kirkpatrick plumbed the depths of myriad logbooks and journals to piece together the often-murky tales of an astonishing number of ships. In this treatise covering a century of whaling, she shares details such as ownership, tonnage, voyages, captains’ pedigrees, and names of crewmen, including nascent whaler Herman Melville, author of Moby-Dick. Hoping for “greasy luck,” the men who manned these ships found both camaraderie and competition as they hunted the world’s whaling grounds from Cape Horn to Kamchatka, many circumnavigating the globe during their careers. They battled squalls and high seas, scurvy and venereal disease, heartbreak and homesickness—and sometimes each other. Many never returned home, their bodies committed to the deep or buried on foreign land. Written in two parts—landward and seaward—Kirkpatrick’s clear prose and adoption of whaling lingua franca brings this high-risk venture to the fore with authenticity, newly revealed facts, and remarkable stories of adventure.

Chronicles the first decades of an informal lottery called the jogo do bicho, or animal game, which originated in Rio de Janeiro in 1892, and remains popular in Brazil today.

Praise for the First Edition "Luck, Logic, and White Lies teaches readers of all backgrounds about the insight mathematical knowledge can bring and is highly recommended reading among avid game players, both to better understand the game itself and to improve one’s skills." – Midwest Book Review "The best book I've found for someone new to game math is Luck, Logic and White Lies by Jörg Bewersdorff. It introduces the reader to a vast mathematical literature, and does so in an enormously clear manner. . ." – Alfred Wallace, Musings, Ramblings, and Things Left Unsaid "The aim is to introduce the mathematics that will allow analysis of the problem or game. This is done in gentle stages, from chapter to chapter, so as to reach as broad an audience as possible . . . Anyone who likes games and has a taste for analytical thinking will enjoy this book." – Peter Fillmore, CMS Notes Luck, Logic, and White Lies: The Mathematics of Games, Second Edition considers a specific problem—generally a game or game fragment and introduces the related mathematical methods. It contains a section on the historical development of the theories of games of chance, and combinatorial and strategic games. This new edition features new and much refreshed chapters, including an all-new Part IV on the problem of how to measure skill in games. Readers are also introduced to new references and techniques developed since the previous edition. Features Provides a uniquely historical perspective on the mathematical underpinnings of a comprehensive list of games Suitable for a broad audience of differing mathematical levels. Anyone with a passion for games, game theory, and mathematics will enjoy this book, whether they be students, academics, or game enthusiasts Covers a wide selection of topics at a level that can be appreciated on a historical, recreational, and mathematical level. Jörg Bewersdorff (1958) studied mathematics from 1975 to 1982 at the University of Bonn and earned his PhD in 1985. In the same year, he started his career as game developer and mathematician. He served as the general manager of the subsidiaries of Gauselmann AG for more than two decades where he developed electronic gaming machines, automatic payment machines, and coin-operated Internet terminals. Dr. Bewersdorff has authored several books on Galois theory (translated in English and Korean), mathematical statistics, and object-oriented programming with JavaScript.

The flamboyant hero of this zany, wildly comic novel is Isaac Schlossberg--circus performer, entertainer, world traveler. Raucous and inventive, this three-ring circus of a novel is at once silly and grand, absurd yet full of meaning.