How Long Is a Piece of String? [Hardcover]

Rob Eastaway (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 3, 2002

Why do weather forecasters get it wrong? What are the best tactics for playing "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?" and "The Weakest Link"? And what is the link between a tin of baked beans and a men's urinal? These and many other questions are answered in this book. It is for anyone wanting to remind themselves - or discover for the first time - that maths is relevant to almost everything we do. Dating, cooking, travelling by car, gambling and ranking sportsmen all have links with intriguing mathematical problems that are explained in this book. It reveals the secrets behind some of the best con tricks and the hidden workings of the taxi meter, and explains how epidemics start and stop.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"It is rare for a book about mathematics to be as engaging as this."  —New Scientist

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Rob Eastaway is the author of the best-selling What is a Googly? and Why Do Buses Come in Threes? He is also responsible for running the Coopers and Lybrand world ratings for cricket, one of sport's best-known mathematical models. Jeremy Wyndham is the managing director of a leading market research company. They both live in London.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Robson Books (May 3, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1861055056
• ISBN-13: 978-1861055057
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,511,240 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I have never read a book so quickly, December 28, 2003

By 

Trevor Hand (Bentleigh, Victoria Australia) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: How Long Is a Piece of String? (Hardcover)

I received this book for Christmas 2003, by the 26th I only had 40 pages left. If you are looking for a book to improve your mathematical ability, this is not for you. If you like to think and wonder why things are the way they are, then this is the book for you. I found myself reading one section after another, chapter after chapter. From the reasons why pyramid schemes are destined to fail, what is the best way to pack boxes of belongings when moving house, when do you take the money and leave 'Who wants to be a Millionaire' and many more fascinating and thought provoking ideas and concepts. I liked the book so much, I bought the previous book 'Why do buses come in threes?' the same day I finished this one - and I have already read one third of that one and it is not even New Year yet. This book would make the perfect gift for anyone who likes to think! So if you think they think, I think you should get it!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars More fun with numbers in everyday life, May 12, 2009

By 

Peter Durward Harris "Pete the music fan" (Leicester England) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: How Long Is a Piece of String?: More Hidden Mathematics of Everyday Life (Paperback)

The sequel to another book by the same authors, Why do buses come in threes?, this book is not quite as strong as its predecessor, but it still has plenty of interest.

The first chapter discusses the calendar and how it came about, including why there are seven days in a week, how those days got their names and why there are twelve months in a year, though it omits to mention how those months got their names. The second chapter is devoted to conmen, illustrating some of the tricks they use to deprive people of their money. Sadly, there will always be plenty of gullible people around who are eager to part with their money if they delude themselves that they are going to get rich quickly. The third chapter is about what makes a hit single. I expected that this would provide an analysis of the way charts are compiled, but it's actually an analysis of musical patterns, though the authors acknowledge that formulaic music id dull.

Other chapters describe how to pack things as tightly as possible, how to make decisions that give the best chance of success, whether it is quicker to use the stairs or wait for a lift, weather forecasting (in my experience, this is much better than it was twenty or thirty years ago), epidemics, taximeters, meeting partners, detecting fraud, sporting underdogs, bad karaoke singers, proving things beyond doubt and spin doctors. There's also the chapter that gives the book its title, in which the authors explain that measuring string isn't always as easy as it may seem.

As with the previous book, this one is great fun but I noticed that political voting wasn't featured in either book. I know that whole books have been written on the subject but it would have been nice to see a chapter here, especially as Brits have to cope with different voting systems for parliamentary and European elections.

Overall, this is a hugely entertaining book worthy of five stars, but if you haven't got the first book and you only want one, buy that first. It won't surprise me if, having read it, you decide to buy this one anyway.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very interseting and fun book to read!, November 29, 2008

By 

podhale - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: How Long Is a Piece of String?: More Hidden Mathematics of Everyday Life (Paperback)

I bought this book on a whim, not knowing whether it would be as good as some people say, or if it would bore me to death. I'm glad I bought it! I'm a college student, and I must say that this is a very interesting book to read. This book has opened my eyes to so many things I have not noticed before! Why do guys avoid using urinals next to each other? What are pyramid scams and how did they bankrupt a country? And many more questions... The book is written in a humorous and down to earth style, and the best thing is that the mathematics of it are very easy to understand. This is a book you will definitely enjoy! You should also check out "Why Do Buses Come In Threes?", which is a prequel to this book.