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Mathematical Recreations and Essays (Dover Math Games & Puzzles) Paperback – May 6, 2010

by W. W. Rouse Ball (Author), H. S. M. Coxeter (Author)

3.8 24 ratings

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"The classic work on recreational math in English."—Martin Gardner

For nearly a century, this sparkling classic has provided stimulating hours of entertainment to the mathematically inclined. The problems posed here often involve fundamental mathematical methods and notions, but their chief appeal is their capacity to tease and delight. In these pages you will find scores of "recreations" to amuse you and to challenge your problem-solving faculties—often to the limit.
Now in its 13th edition, Mathematical Recreations and Essays has been thoroughly revised and updated over the decades since its first publication in 1892. This latest edition retains all the remarkable character of the original, but the terminology and treatment of some problems have been updated and new material has been added.
Among the challenges in store for you: Arithmetical and geometrical recreations; Polyhedra; Chess-board recreations; Magic squares; Map-coloring problems; Unicursal problems; Cryptography and cryptanalysis; Calculating prodigies; … and more.
You'll even find problems which mathematical ingenuity can solve but the computer cannot. No knowledge of calculus or analytic geometry is necessary to enjoy these games and puzzles. With basic mathematical skills and the desire to meet a challenge you can put yourself to the test and win.
"A must to add to your mathematics library."—The Mathematics Teacher

About the Author

H. S. M. Coxeter: Through the Looking Glass
Harold Scott MacDonald Coxeter (1907–2003) is one of the greatest geometers of the last century, or of any century, for that matter. Coxeter was associated with the University of Toronto for sixty years, the author of twelve books regarded as classics in their field, a student of Hermann Weyl in the 1930s, and a colleague of the intriguing Dutch artist and printmaker Maurits Escher in the 1950s.

In the Author's Own Words:
"I'm a Platonist — a follower of Plato — who believes that one didn't invent these sorts of things, that one discovers them. In a sense, all these mathematical facts are right there waiting to be discovered."

"In our times, geometers are still exploring those new Wonderlands, partly for the sake of their applications to cosmology and other branches of science, but much more for the sheer joy of passing through the looking glass into a land where the familiar lines, planes, triangles, circles, and spheres are seen to behave in strange but precisely determined ways."

"Geometry is perhaps the most elementary of the sciences that enable man, by purely intellectual processes, to make predictions (based on observation) about the physical world. The power of geometry, in the sense of accuracy and utility of these deductions, is impressive, and has been a powerful motivation for the study of logic in geometry."

"Let us revisit Euclid. Let us discover for ourselves a few of the newer results. Perhaps we may be able to recapture some of the wonder and awe that our first contact with geometry aroused." — H. S. M. Coxeter

Print length

464 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Dover Publications
Publication date

May 6, 2010
Dimensions

5.41 x 0.92 x 8.47 inches
ISBN-10

0486253570
ISBN-13

978-0486253572
See all details

Boris A. Kordemsky
758
Paperback
80 offers from $3.88
Martin Gardner
957
Paperback
102 offers from $1.25

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Dover Publications; 13th Revised ed. edition (May 6, 2010)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 464 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0486253570
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0486253572
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.04 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.41 x 0.92 x 8.47 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #1,665,766 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #850 in Math Games
- #6,628 in Puzzles (Books)
- #17,263 in Mathematics (Books)

Customer Reviews:
3.8 24 ratings

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W. W. Rouse Ball
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Customer reviews

3.8 out of 5

24 global ratings

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Dr. James V. Blowers

Revised Classic

Reviewed in the United States on May 21, 2013

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One of the books that I read from the library when I was a child and teenager in the late 1950s and early 1960s was WW Rouse Ball's "Mathematical Recreations and Essays". I learned a lot about mathematics from this book. But I have been away from my home town for many years now, and had never seen the book since then. When I saw it available on Amazon, I bought it. Much of it seemed familiar, but there were revisions made, as I see references to years in the 1980s. Also I note that HSM Coxeter is now a co-author. He's another author from my child and teen days, especially his "Mathematical Models" book which I have. It is still a good book for learning about fun mathematical things, and I highly recommend it, and it reminds me of the old days.

3 people found this helpful

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glasshopper

Timeless Wisdom...

Reviewed in the United States on July 20, 2011

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My favorite -- N is prime if, and only if, (N - 1)! + 1 is divisible by N -- or
maybe you already know that?

3 people found this helpful

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Susan Barger

great book

Reviewed in the United States on December 10, 2021

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this is just what I was looking for!

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peachhjf

... bought the ebook version and the format is so bad that it is not readable

Reviewed in the United States on February 5, 2016

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I bought the ebook version and the format is so bad that it is not readable.

3 people found this helpful

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K.C

Guarded purchase....

Reviewed in the United States on November 2, 2013

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More than I expected. I've only had time to skim thru it but as I am interested in design and how things come into being (design wise) I think that this will be a very welcome aid and addition to my library.

Reviewed in the United States on May 16, 2007

Any fan of mathematical puzzles will go ape over this thoroughly researched, timeless classic. Even for jaded scientists in their forties (such as me) and beyond, there's always some new gem to be discovered at the turn of a page. The scope of the book is immense, ranging from all manner of "classical" recreations to the puzzles of antiquity (e.g., squaring the circle) to the history of pi to the structure and functionality of the kaleidoscope. It's all here!

11 people found this helpful

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Scott Henson

Best consumed in chunks

Reviewed in the United States on March 31, 2015

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A classic. Challenging but fascinating. Best consumed in chunks.

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Donald Rogers

A Classic Compendium...

Reviewed in the United States on September 14, 2000

This is a classic collection of mathematical recreations. Originally written by W.W. Rouse Ball around 1900, this edition has been updated by the great geometer H.S.M. Coxeter. It is a comprehensive first source for information about magic squares, Platonic and Archimedian solids, "Knight's Tours" and other chessboard recreations, and just about any other variety of math-related puzzle you could name.
For a mathematician, Coxeter is an excellent writer, and the book is quite accessible, even to relative math novices. Fans of Martin Gardner's books, of his "Scientific American" Mathematical Games columns, will want to own this. And because it's published by Dover, the price is right, too.

23 people found this helpful

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Lecteur

Décu

Reviewed in France on October 21, 2016

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Le format poche n'est pas idéal.
Le livre est difficile à lire.
Il n'est pas assez illustré.
Je reste sur ma faim.

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Martyn Johnson

A poor rendering of this classic

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 14, 2014

Verified Purchase

This is a classic work but this Kindle edition does not do it justice. I bought it for the convenience of having a Kindle edition but rapidly returned it as I concluded that it wasn't even worth 77p. There is no useful navigation, and the even the most elementary mathematical notation is so garbled as to be incomprehensible. The free PDF version from Project Gutenberg is worlds better.

2 people found this helpful

何のなにがし

内容は★★★★★。Kindle版ではなく紙の本を買いましょう

Reviewed in Japan on May 29, 2015

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中身は良いです。さまざまな数学系のクイズやパズルは，100年も前のものとは思えない面白さです。ただ問題は，Kindle化のしかたです。おそらく，画像をOCRにかけただけで，何の手も加えていないのではないかと思われます。
まず，目次が目次として扱われておらず，本文と同じです。つまり，クリックしてもそのページに飛びません。章が変わるところの改ページも無視されています。
そして，至る所といっていいほど，誤字脱字だらけです。
最初のページの冒頭から，いきなりPEEFACE＝しょんべん面？（汚くてすみません）ときます。
数式が出てくるところなど支離滅裂で，なんのことかさっぱりわかりません。数学の本で数式が読めないというのは致命的です。

ちょっとだけ本文の例を示すと，
Every even number is of the form 2/1, 　[正しくは2n]
and the successive operations applied to the give (i) 6n, which is even;
(ii) J6n = 3n; [正しくはJではなくて分数で上下に書いた1/2]
(iii) 3x3n = 97i; [もちろん9n]
(iv) ・^9?2 = w; [1/9 9n = n です]
(v) 2n.
その少し先に「Second Methodf.」とあるのは何かと思ったら，「Second Method†」というダガー印だったり。
しかも，それに対応する脚注が本文の続き扱いだったり。

表紙と目次の1ページ目だけは画像でしたが，残りはテキスト化されています。でもこんないい加減なテキスト化だったら，全ページ画像データにしてくれたほうが，まだ本文が読めるだけマシです。
きちんとしたKindle版が出るまでは，紙の本で読みましょう。

One person found this helpful

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B. Evans

Kindle Edition is NOT THE SAME EDITION as the others listed.

Reviewed in Canada on December 28, 2013

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Warning - The Kindle Edition while listed with a newer edition that was updated by H.S.M. Coxeter is actually the old public domain edition available for free from the Internet Archive (as stated in the Kindle eBook itself).

The best version of this book has two authors: the original author W. W. Rouse Ball and H. S. M. Coxeter who updated it. Currently the best bet is to get the latest paperback edition. Mathematical Recreations and Essays

3 people found this helpful

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