CRC Concise Encyclopedia of Mathematics, Second Edition (Hardcover)

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Editorial Reviews

Review

"I cannot praise the work too highly: Its vast scope and readability make the encyclopedia a great success."
— Robert Dickau

"Impressive...I found it very interesting and spent time reading about a variety of topics for which I had very little background or knowledge...A valuable source of information..."
— W.E. Schiesser, Lehigh University
"Users will actually look forward to picking it up… one of the more important tools that will help college students actually grasp important mathematical concepts, written in such a way as to invite students to return to it time and again to discover that they really can understand mathematics and apply its concepts to derive solutions to practical problems.

I cannot praise the work too highly: Its vast scope and readability make the encyclopedia a great success.
- Robert Dickau

Impressive...I found it very interesting and spent time reading about a variety of topics for which I had very little background or knowledge...A valuable source of information...
- W.E. Schiesser, Lehigh University

It seems to me that [Weisstein's] encyclopedia inaugurates a new era for two reasons: one, as the suthor says, this book lives and breathes hand-in-hand with the Internet. This book's ease of reference, despite a lack of index due to size limitation, and interactive features place it squarely and successfully in this new age. The second reason why the book is a first in the technology age is that CAS are used extensively by the author, and Mathematica codes are included in this new edition. SIAM Review, Vol. 46

It seems to me that [Weisstein’s] encyclopedia inaugurates a new era for two reasons: one, as the author says, this book lives and breathes hand-in-hand with the Internet. This book’s ease of reference, despite a lack of index due to size limitation, and interactive features place it squarely and successfully in this new age. The second reason why the book is a first in the technology age is that CAS are used extensively by the author, and Mathematica codes are included in this new edition. SIAM Review, Vol. 46

Praise for the first edition:
"This extraordinary volume beautifully captures many of the discoveries in mathematics in a readable and authoritative fashion…What is truly exceptional is that this encyclopedia is the product of a single dedicated and talented author…This book is an excellent resource for both teaching and research libraries…
—Journal of Mathematical Psychology

Praise for the first edition:
This extraordinary volume beautifully captures many of the discoveries in mathematics in a readable and authoritative fashion…What is truly exceptional is that this encyclopedia is the product of a single dedicated and talented author…This book is an excellent resource for both teaching and research libraries…
-Journal of Mathematical Psychology

Users will actually look forward to picking it up… one of the more important tools that will help college students actually grasp important mathematical concepts, written in such a way as to invite students to return to it time and again to discover that they really can understand mathematics and apply its concepts to derive solutions to practical problems.

Product Description

Upon publication, the first edition of the CRC Concise Encyclopedia of Mathematics received overwhelming accolades for its unparalleled scope, readability, and utility. It soon took its place among the top selling books in the history of Chapman & Hall/CRC, and its popularity continues unabated.Yet also unabated has been the dedication of author Eric Weisstein to collecting, cataloging, and referencing mathematical facts, formulas, and definitions. He has now updated most of the original entries and expanded the Encyclopedia to include 1000 additional pages of illustrated entries.The accessibility of the Encyclopedia along with its broad coverage and economical price make it attractive to the widest possible range of readers and certainly a must for libraries, from the secondary to the professional and research levels. For mathematical definitions, formulas, figures, tabulations, and references, this is simply the most impressive compendium available.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 3252 pages
• Publisher: Chapman & Hall/CRC; 2 edition (December 12, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1584883472
• ISBN-13: 978-1584883470
• Product Dimensions: 11.2 x 8.8 x 3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,180,131 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

76 of 78 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Having a fundamental issue with purchasing this book., January 30, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: The CRC Concise Encyclopedia of Mathematics (Hardcover)

After reading the account of the author's legal problems brought
on by the publisher, I cannot bring myself to purchase a copy
of the book. This book, together Eric's experiences, amount
to a significant turning point in the history of the relationship
between an author and his publisher. It stands as an example of
how corporations have become entirely too powerful against an
individual. It is inconcievable that such circumstances have prevailed. The worst part is that the publisher's actions will continue to stifle development of the work!

67 of 70 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Support Eric Weisstein but DO NOT BUY THIS BOOK, September 9, 2005

By	Alexander C. Zorach "Alex Zorach" (Lancaster, PA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book is the centerpiece of a very scary and disturbing legal altercation in which the publisher, CRC Press LLC, basically tried to strong-arm Eric W. Weisstein into gaining complete control over the material on his mathworld website, after he signed a contract for them to publish this book, which is essentially a snapshot of the material.

I would urge everyone to show personal support for Eric W. Weisstein in whatever way possible--donations are a great idea. However, by buying this book you are supporting a company that is greedy and downright creepy. You're also encouraging other companies to do the same.

We need to show the publishing industry that greed does not pay--and one great way of doing that is by not buying this book.

90 of 99 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Content ... but Its also Available Free, June 3, 2004

By	Mr AI "aideveloper" (UK) - See all my reviews

I'm not giving this book 1 star because its a bad book! I'm giving this book 1 star because you shouldn't under any circumstances buy it (in my opinion of course).

The book is a compilation of the mathematical artices compiled by Weisstein over many years. It is the most complete collection of introductory mathematics you can imagine, with ever expanding detail, and contributions from a large number of different writers. I could effuse about the content for hours: it has saved my mathematical bacon on very many occasions, and remains my major reference to new areas of math. This book, while being a new edition, still only contains a small fraction of Eric's content.

The complete contents of this book, instantly and easily searchable, with cross references, links to other topics and sites, and incorporating animations is all available at the mathword.wolfram.com website. It is all available free of charge, and is constantly edited and updated. In addition, a huge amount of extra material is there which couldn't be contained in this book.

A previous reviewer alluded to the fact that Eric, when trying to publish his website (which was always a website, long before he signed the deal for the book, and was given special dispensation in the publishing contract), was sued by the publisher of this book and told to take his site down. Although I can see it from the publishers point of view, their attitude towards this key resource was undoubtedly callous and cynical.

I'd really recommend you use his excellent website. If you feel bad that Eric isn't getting his royalty from your purchase: send him a cheque for $5.