Thinking Mathematically [Paperback]

J. Mason (Author), L. Burton (Author), K. Stacey (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0201102382 | ISBN-13: 978-0201102383 | Publication Date: January 11, 1982 | Edition: 1

Thinking Mathematically unfolds the processes which lie at the heart of mathematics. It demonstrates how to encourage, develop, and foster the processes which seem to come naturally to mathematicians. In this way, a deep seated awareness of the nature of mathematical thinking can grow. The book is increasingly used to provide students at a tertiary level with some experience of mathematical thinking processes.

Editorial Reviews

Review

‘Every student doing a mathematics degree should read this book.’
James Blowey, Durham University

‘The ideas I encountered in Thinking Mathematically continue to influence the way in which I work today.’
David J Wraith, National University of Ireland, Maynooth

‘[This book] transformed my attitude to mathematics from apathy to delight’
Nichola Clarke, Oxford University

'Thinking Mathematically has always been one of my favorite books. Expanded and updated, this version is a must for my bookshelf and should be for yours too.'
Alan Schoenfeld, University ofCalifornia, Berkeley

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

From the Back Cover

Thinking Mathematically

Second Edition

 

‘Every student doing a mathematics degree should read this book.’

James Blowey, Durham University

 

‘The ideas I encountered in Thinking Mathematically continue to influence the way in which I work today.’

David J Wraith, National University of Ireland, Maynooth

 

‘[This book] transformed my attitude to mathematics from apathy to delight’

Nichola Clarke, Oxford University

 

'Thinking Mathematically has always been one of my favorite books. Expanded and updated, this version is a must for my bookshelf and should be for yours too.'

Alan Schoenfeld, University of California, Berkeley

 

 

Thinking Mathematically is perfect for anyone who wants to develop their powers to think mathematically, whether at school, at university or just out of interest. This book is invaluable for anyone who wishes to promote mathematical thinking in others or for anyone who has always wondered what lies at the core of mathematics.

 

Thinking Mathematically reveals the processes at the heart of mathematics and demonstrates how to encourage and develop them. Extremely practical, it involves the reader in questions so that subsequent discussions speak to immediate experience.

 

The text has been updated with 77 fresh problems matched to curriculum topics together with links between those topics and the original problems. There is a new preface describing the origins and uses of the first edition, and a new chapter correlates mathematical processes with the natural powers that every learner has already demonstrated in learning to speak.

 

John Mason is a Professor Emeritus at the Open University and a Senior Research Fellow at the University of Oxford.

 

Kaye Stacey is a Foundation Professor of Mathematics Education at the Melbourne Graduate School of Education, University of Melbourne

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Addison Wesley; 1 edition (January 11, 1982)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0201102382
• ISBN-13: 978-0201102383
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #181,121 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great for the transition to university maths, May 17, 2001

By 

William Stevenson (State College, PA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Thinking Mathematically (Paperback)

This book helped me quite a great deal with my foray into university mathematics, which are quite different from the algorithmic problems one is often dealt in highschool. Before reading this book, I would often read a problem and just be /stuck/. If it were a test, I would put a question mark in the answer blank and just move along. This is because I didn't have a sense of where to begin with novel problems. After reading this book, though, I learned the tricks of specializing and generalizing. Much of the advice given in the book might seem obvious ("start with small cases," "draw a picture," etc.) but doesn't really get thought of during a stressful exam. By working through this book (and you have to *work* through it, don't expect to read it like a novel trying to glean advice), any sufficiently mathematically-minded person can deserve to call themself a mathematician, for they will truly begin to think like one. After it, they should check out Velleman's "How to Prove It" and R.P. Burn's "Numbers and Functions."

28 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars you learn mathematics by doing it., September 5, 2000

By 

David E. Molnar (MN) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Thinking Mathematically (Paperback)

I used this book for a course I taught at the University of Connecticut. It has a lot to offer, especially for the price. Sample problem: draw a bunch of lines across a piece of paper. Can the resulting picture be colored only in black and white, with no adjoining regions sharing the same color? Works through examples like this one in excruciating detail, encourages the reader to sweat through problems, the payoff coming when you start to see patterns not in the problems themselves, but in how you approach them. Last chapter consists entirely of problems, with suggestions on how to attack, and then extend them.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Just what the title says, February 12, 2010

By 

M. Singh "Freebee" (USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Thinking Mathematically (Paperback)

This book really makes you think mathematically. It gives you a systematic approach to solving mathematically and analytical problems. It gives you tips for keeping your concentration on working problems involving numbers.

If you make the effort to really go through this book bit by bit it will really help you think mathematically in all areas of your life.