This book collects nine related mathematical essays which will intrigue and inform. From the reviews: "The authors put their writing where their talents are, and students get to see just how alive mathematics is...there is much to commend the book. It contains plenty of interesting mathematics, often going in unusual directions. I like the diagrams; the authors have chosen mathematics that involves especially pretty ones." --THE MATHEMATICAL ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA

A relaxed and informal presentation conveying the joy of mathematical discovery and insight. Frequent questions lead readers to see mathematics as an accessible world of thought, where understanding can turn opaque formulae into beautiful and meaningful ideas. The text presents eight topics that illustrate the unity of mathematical thought as well as the diversity of mathematical ideas. Drawn from both "pure" and "applied" mathematics, they include: spirals in nature and in mathematics; the modern topic of fractals and the ancient topic of Fibonacci numbers; Pascals Triangle and paper folding; modular arithmetic and the arithmetic of the infinite. The final chapter presents some ideas about how mathematics should be done, and hence, how it should be taught. Presenting many recent discoveries that lead to interesting open questions, the book can serve as the main text in courses dealing with contemporary mathematical topics or as enrichment for other courses. It can also be read with pleasure by anyone interested in the intellectually intriguing aspects of mathematics.

Intended for juniors and seniors majoring in mathematics, as well as anyone pursuing independent study, this book traces the historical development of four different mathematical concepts by presenting readers with the original sources. Each chapter showcases a masterpiece of mathematical achievement, anchored to a sequence of selected primary sources. The authors examine the interplay between the discrete and continuous, with a focus on sums of powers. They then delineate the development of algorithms by Newton, Simpson and Smale. Next they explore our modern understanding of curvature, and finally they look at the properties of prime numbers. The book includes exercises, numerous photographs, and an annotated bibliography.

A fresh exploration into the 'human nature versus technology’ argument, revealing an unexpected advantage that humans have over our future robot masters: we’re actually good at mathematics. There’s so much discussion about the threat posed by intelligent machines that it sometimes seems as though we should simply surrender to our robot overlords now. But Junaid Mubeen isn’t ready to throw in the towel just yet. As far as he is concerned, we have the creative edge over computers, because of a remarkable system of thought that humans have developed over the millennia. It’s familiar to us all, but often badly taught in schools and misrepresented in popular discourse—math. Computers are, of course, brilliant at totting up sums, pattern-seeking, and performing mindless tasks of, well, computation. For all things calculation, machines reign supreme. But Junaid identifies seven areas of intelligence where humans can retain a crucial edge. And in exploring these areas, he opens up a fascinating world where we can develop our uniquely human mathematical talents. Just a few of the fascinating subjects covered in MATHEMATICAL INTELLIGENCE include: -Humans are endowed with a natural sense of numbers that is based on approximation rather than precise calculation. Our in-built estimation skills complement the precision of computers. Interpreting the real world depends on both. -What sets humans apart from other animals is language and abstraction. We have an extraordinary ability to create powerful representations of knowledge— more diverse than the binary language of computers. -Mathematics confers the most robust, logical framework for establishing permanent truths. Reasoning shields us from the dubious claims of pure pattern-recognition systems. -All mathematical truths are derived from a starting set of assumptions, or axioms. Unlike computers, humans have the freedom to break free of convention and examine the logical consequences of our choices. Mathematics rewards our imagination with fascinating and, on occasion, applicable concepts that originate from breaking the rules. -Computers can be tasked to solve a range of problems, but which problems are worth the effort? Questioning is as vital to our repertoire of thinking skills as problem-solving itself.

An Introduction to Mathematical Cryptography provides an introduction to public key cryptography and underlying mathematics that is required for the subject. Each of the eight chapters expands on a specific area of mathematical cryptography and provides an extensive list of exercises. It is a suitable text for advanced students in pure and applied mathematics and computer science, or the book may be used as a self-study. This book also provides a self-contained treatment of mathematical cryptography for the reader with limited mathematical background.