Once Upon a NumberOnce Upon a Number
the Hidden Mathematical Logic of Stories
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Book, 1998
Current format, Book, 1998, 1st ed, All copies in use.Book, 1998
Current format, Book, 1998, 1st ed, All copies in use. Offered in 0 more formatsWhat two things could be more different than numbers and stories? Numbers are abstract, certain, and eternal, but to most of us somewhat dry and bloodless. Good stories are full of life: they engage our emotions and have subtlety and nuance, but they lack rigor and the truths they tell are elusive and subject to debate. As ways of understanding the world around us, numbers and stories seem almost completely incompatible.Once Upon a Number shows that stories and numbers aren’t as different as you might imagine, and in fact they have surprising and fascinating connections. The concepts of logic and probability both grew out of intuitive ideas about how certain situations would play out. Now, logicians are inventing ways to deal with real world situations by mathematical means—by acknowledging, for instance, that items that are mathematically interchangeable may not be interchangeable in a story. And complexity theory looks at both number strings and narrative strings in remarkably similar terms.Throughout, renowned author John Paulos mixes numbers and narratives in his own delightful style. Along with lucid accounts of cutting-edge information theory we get hilarious anecdotes and jokes; instructions for running a truly impressive pyramid scam; a freewheeling conversation between Groucho Marx and Bertrand Russell (while they’re stuck in an elevator together); explanations of why the statistical evidence against OJ Simpson was overwhelming beyond doubt and how the Unabomber’s thinking shows signs of mathematical training; and dozens of other treats. This is another winner from America’s favorite mathematician.
Paulos (mathematics, Temple U.) builds his bridge between literature and mathematics using the most intriguing parts of logic, probability and statistics, information and literary theory, and the philosophy of science. He includes anecdotes and jokes, instructions for an impressive pyramid scam, a conversation between Groucho Marx and Bertrand Russell, explanations of why the facts of the O.J. Simpson case are overwhelmingly incriminating; and how the Unabomber's thinking shows signs of mathematical training. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.
In his well-known style, full of anecdotes and witty observations, America’s favorite mathematician takes on our two most basic ways of representing information—narratives and numbers—showing the surprising things they have in common.
Explores the ways in which statistical analysis and mathematical logic apply to everyday life
Paulos (mathematics, Temple U.) builds his bridge between literature and mathematics using the most intriguing parts of logic, probability and statistics, information and literary theory, and the philosophy of science. He includes anecdotes and jokes, instructions for an impressive pyramid scam, a conversation between Groucho Marx and Bertrand Russell, explanations of why the facts of the O.J. Simpson case are overwhelmingly incriminating; and how the Unabomber's thinking shows signs of mathematical training. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.
In his well-known style, full of anecdotes and witty observations, America’s favorite mathematician takes on our two most basic ways of representing information—narratives and numbers—showing the surprising things they have in common.
Explores the ways in which statistical analysis and mathematical logic apply to everyday life
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- New York, NY : Basic Books, c1998.
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