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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A mathematic detective story, January 27, 2001
Eric Temple Bell, (1883-1960), was the first person to truly popularize mathematics with his classic 1937 book, "Men of Mathematics". Many mathematicians, including Reid's own sister Julia Robinson, later to become famous as one of the finest early women mathematicians, cite this book as the reason why they turned to a career in mathematics.But his early life was rather a mystery, and when Albers and Alexanderson, two mathematicians who were attempting to profile Bell, talked to Reid, she became intrigued by the contradictory statements and minimal evidence about where he lived up until the early 1920's. He'd always claimed to be Scottish--but was he born in Aberdeen or Peterhead? He said he'd traveled around the world as a teenager--but never said exactly when or how. He claimed to have been at the University of London, which didn't fit with what else was known about his education. Reid talked to Bell's son Taine, and soon decided that she had a mystery to unravel. Initially she agreed only to write the story of his early life, but eventually wrote a full biography. The book is told in the present tense, as Reid walks us through her early discoveries. This is a device that works well in the early chapters, when she is talking to folks in Peterhead and San Jose, trying to find clues; but it palls later. By the twenties Bell's career was enough in the public record that it would have been pointless for him to lie about it, and from that point on Reid's occasional interjections in the present tense, as she relates a discovery or inconsistency, are a little jarring. That's a minor point though. The book is fascinating, both in its portrait of Bell, who was multi-faceted--a distinguished mathematician, a prolific sf author, and a top-flight popular mathematics writer--and in the story of the detective work Reid had to do. Eventually Reid does uncover almost everything one could hope for, though Bell's motivation for lying about his past will probably never be known. It becomes apparent by late in the book that Bell never even told his wife the truth about his first years. His mathematical career is covered in reasonable detail, with some input from Lincoln Durst, who has spent much time studying Bell's papers. It's clear that Bell was original and influential, though oddly it appears that the gift of smooth exposition so in evidence in his popular work was sometimes missing from his mathematical papers. Apparently there have been many instances when later mathematicians have rediscovered results originally due to Bell, mainly because his papers were often obscure or poorly written. The only real criticism I have is the lack of a bibliography. Even a list of twenty or so important papers would have sufficed for the mathematics, but for the books I think it is a real omission. Other than that, however, this is a great biography and a fascinating read. Recommended.
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