Mathematics in Nature: Modeling Patterns in the Natural World (Hardcover)

by John A. Adam (Author) "In recent years, as I have walked daily to and from work, I have started to train myself to observe the sky, the birds, butterflies,..." (more)
Key Phrases: circumhorizontal arc, glitter path, longitudinal sand dunes, New York, Lord Rayleigh, New Scientist (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
"Adam takes almost every visible aspect of the natural world and uses mathematical reasoning to enrich our understanding". -- Stanley David Gedzelman, Weatherwise

"Be warned, however. This is a book that will challenge while it intrigues and excites". -- Stanley David Gedzelman, Weatherwise

"It is refreshing to see how much can be accomplished with simple mathematical means". -- Philip J. Davis, SIAM News

"an excellent resource for bringing a greater variety of patterns into the mathematical study of nature". -- Will Wilson, American Scientist

One surprising example after another of how mathematics can be used to explain natural phenomena. And what examples! -- Steven Morics , MAA Online

Review
Read for pleasure and instruction by the select laity who are not afraid of reading between the lines of equations.
(Philip J. Davis SIAM News )

One surprising example after another of how mathematics can be used to explain natural phenomena. And what examples!
(Steven Morics MAA Online )

One of the best contemporary texts on the subject, appealing to a very broad audience.
(Yuri V. Rogovchenko Zentralblatt Math (European Mathematical Society) )

John Adam's quest is a very simple one: to invite one to look around and observe the wonders of nature.
(Brian D. Sleeman Notices of the American Mathematical Association )

Reading this book progressively creates a course in mathematical modeling built around familiar, tangible, human-scale examples.
(Choice )

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 416 pages
• Publisher: Princeton University Press (November 10, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0691114293
• ISBN-13: 978-0691114293
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #903,957 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Seeing beauty through numbers, February 3, 2004

By	S. Goodman (Los Angeles) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

For those of us who admire nature and see it as a product of processes both beautiful and rational, Adam's book is the perfect bedside long-termer for anyone more than casually interested in math or the intricate patterns in nature.

This book is chock full of ponderous examples of mathematical simplicity and complexity in nature, and reading it I was constantly reading only one topic and then putting the book down for days to think about and tinker with the question myself.

Good pictures, solid math (I prefer clean, modelistic equations to numerical approximations anyday), and a charming, conversational writing style make this book highly readable and highly inspiring in the way it makes you reexamine your perception of nature as unintegrated or inelegant. The very repetition of mathematical themes throughout nature - such as the omnipresent Golden Ration - proves otherwise.

For me, this is staying on my "constantly referenced" shelf.

23 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, January 4, 2004

By	David (NJ) - See all my reviews

I disagree strongly with the previous reviewer. The book is well presented, with some lovely photos, and is nicely produced and attractive. The actual content of the book is equally good. Some of the material is familiar, but the author always seems to take a good fresh look at these topics so I still enjoyed them. There was some new material too, which I particularly enjoyed. This is an excellent book, and I hope that the negative review on Amazon will not discourage potential readers from buying a copy.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars excellent, May 15, 2007

By	Bosko Rasuo "Book excellent" (Belgrade, Serbia) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Mathematics in Nature: Modeling Patterns in the Natural World (Paperback)

Mathematics in Nature is an excellent resource for bringing a greater variety of patterns into the mathematical study of nature, as well as for
teaching students to think about describing natural phenomena mathematically.