Customer Reviews

History of the Theory of Numbers (AMS Chelsea Publishing)

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"History of the Theory of Numbers" is a quite unusual type of reference/history book.

Rather than list entries in alphabetical order or in a strictly chronological order, "History of the Theory of Numbers" lists a very large number of important discoveries in number theory by topic in chronological order. Although the book will not enable a novice to understand most concepts within the field of number theory, the amount of detail it gives about how knowledge in such fields as prime and perfect numbers evolved in the centuries up to its publication in 1923 is quite remarkable.

Where else can you find the name of the man who proved 1111111111111111111 (nineteen ones) to be prime - and see that remarkably there was no attempt to test it for primality even when mathematicians of the calibre of Lucas could prove it had almost certainly had not factor? Where else can you find the factor of (2^53-1)? I could list so many other facts in number theory that would surprise even those with the experience I have studying prime and other famous numbers like perfect and multiply perfect ones.

Although using it can seem awkward at first, for those with a reasonable knowledge of number theory, "History of the Theory of Numbers" should become easy after a few reads as it is structured very logically.

All in all, even if not for the beginner, this is one of the best reference mathematics books you will ever find.