Calculus and Pizza: A Cookbook for the Hungry Mind (Paperback)

by Clifford A. Pickover (Author) "Hello. My name is Luigi..." (more)
Key Phrases: use logarithmic differentiation, chain rile, trigonometric substitution, Big Tony, New York, Fifth Avenue (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
CALCULUS + PEPPERONI / FUN = MATH SUCCESS

Do you want to do well on your calculus exam? Are you looking for a quick refresher course? Or would you just like to get a taste of what calculus is all about? If so, you’ve selected the right book. Calculus and Pizza is a creative, surprisingly delicious overview of the essential rules and formulas of calculus, with tons of problems for the learner with a healthy appetite.

Setting up residence in a pizza parlor, Clifford Pickover focuses on procedures for solving problems, offering short, easy-to-digest chapters that allow you to quickly get the essence of a technique or question. From exponentials and logarithms to derivatives and multiple integrals, the book utilizes pepperoni, meatballs, and more to make complex topics fun to learn–emphasizing basic, practical principles to help you calculate the speed of tossed pizza dough or the rising cost of eggplant parmigiana. Plus, you’ll see how simple math–and a meal–can solve especially curious and even mind-shattering problems.

Authoritatively and humorously written, Calculus and Pizza provides a lively–and more tasteful–approach to calculus.

"Pickover has published nearly a book a year in which he stretches the limits of computers, art, and thought."
–Los Angeles Times

"A perpetual idea machine, Clifford Pickover is one of the most creative, original thinkers in the world today."
–Journal of Recreational Mathematics

From the Back Cover
CALCULUS + PEPPERONI / FUN = MATH SUCCESS

Do you want to do well on your calculus exam? Are you looking for a quick refresher course? Or would you just like to get a taste of what calculus is all about? If so, you’ve selected the right book. Calculus and Pizza is a creative, surprisingly delicious overview of the essential rules and formulas of calculus, with tons of problems for the learner with a healthy appetite.

Setting up residence in a pizza parlor, Clifford Pickover focuses on procedures for solving problems, offering short, easy-to-digest chapters that allow you to quickly get the essence of a technique or question. From exponentials and logarithms to derivatives and multiple integrals, the book utilizes pepperoni, meatballs, and more to make complex topics fun to learn–emphasizing basic, practical principles to help you calculate the speed of tossed pizza dough or the rising cost of eggplant parmigiana. Plus, you’ll see how simple math–and a meal–can solve especially curious and even mind-shattering problems.

Authoritatively and humorously written, Calculus and Pizza provides a lively–and more tasteful–approach to calculus.

"Pickover has published nearly a book a year in which he stretches the limits of computers, art, and thought."
–Los Angeles Times

"A perpetual idea machine, Clifford Pickover is one of the most creative, original thinkers in the world today."
–Journal of Recreational Mathematics

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: John Wiley & Sons (September 15, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0471269875
• ISBN-13: 978-0471269878
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #489,137 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A really fun read, and you learn Calculus too, August 20, 2003

By	S. A. Corning (Gurnee, IL USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is a great book on many levels. The basics of Calculus are clearly communicated. There are lots of interesting examples, and problems to solve. The story of the pizza parlor involves great imagery, and fascinating characters. Plus the chapters are short, which helps retention. I bought the book as a review tool. A lot of calculus help books are geared to just doing well on tests. Completing this book should help anyone to get a real, "feel", for the beauty and usefulness of Calculus.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great!! But neccessarily incomplete., August 23, 2003

By	Alec (The Sun's Inverse Heart) - See all my reviews

This book served to demistify the entire basics of the calculus for me. Without it, I'd still be wondering about the derivative, or about limits or integrals. On the other hand, it contains about 5% of the stuff in a real calc book, which is why I'm glad I've got both. Even today I refer back to this when the definitions Swokowski gives me are too obscure to understand.

If you have trouble understanding calculus, buy this, not a copy of Schaum's outlines. This will open you up to fundamental concepts, and once you have those down, reading any normal calculus text will be a breeze.

The book is also very poetic. Pickover is a great writer, besides being a great mathematician.

15 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Don't Judge a Book By It's Title, February 7, 2006

By	John C. Simpson (Kennesaw, GA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I have no doubt that this book will come in handy for college level "calc" students looking for a refresher, but DO NOT confuse this as a "Calculus for Dummies" approach to the subject. From the first couple of pages I felt as though I had been thrown in the deep end of the pool in order to learn how to swim. I was anticipating a more accessible book and I was disappointed. The examples of tomato sauce mold, rocket launched meatballs and giant pepperoni (don't ask) didn't serve to ground calculus in the real world for me. Again, maybe a terrific text for people that already have a grounding in the subject, but hardly as comforting as the title would lead you to believe.