Skip to content
Scan a barcode
Scan
Hardcover The History of Mathematics: A Brief Course Book

ISBN: 0471444596

ISBN13: 9780471444596

The History of Mathematics: A Brief Course

Select Format

Select Condition ThriftBooks Help Icon

Recommended

Format: Hardcover

Condition: Good

$14.69
Save $133.31!
List Price $148.00
Almost Gone, Only 1 Left!

Book Overview

Aimed at undergraduate students majoring in mathematics, science, engineering, and secondary education, this third edition examines the elementary arithmetic, geometry, and algebra of a number of... This description may be from another edition of this product.

Customer Reviews

3 ratings

Trust

I've spent a long career trying to establish a few solid relationships between mathematics and the sciences of mind. Thus, it is truly a great pleasure to read a book on such a vast and deep subject as the history of mathematics and be thoroughly able to trust the author's knowledge of it through chapter after chapter.

A very proper emphasis on the historical context and chapters on the role of the non-western world

Approximately every three years, I teach a course in the history of mathematics. It is one of my favorite math courses to teach, because it allows me to delve into the historical and cultural context of the development of mathematics. Among other things, I was a history minor in college, and if you learn anything in that field, it is that events are never isolated. Everything takes place in a social, economic, cultural and historical context, and that includes the development of new mathematics. Cooke is obviously as much a student of history as he is of mathematics. The technical structure of the mathematics is explained within the historical and cultural settings. There are many exercises at the end of the chapters with solutions to some of them included at the end. The coverage of the development of mathematics in the western world is fairly standard. Cooke is to be commended in that he includes sections on what was going on in the rest of the world. Section II contains the following chapters: *) Mathematics of the Hindus *) Chinese mathematics *) Korea and Japan *) Islamic mathematics Many mathematics books mention the role of the Islamic nations in keeping the ancient mathematics alive. However, there is little acknowledgement of what was going on in other cultures. If there is a mention of mathematics outside the western sphere, it is in reference to the creation of our modern numeration system. It may be some time before I teach the history of mathematics again. If I do, I will once again place a great deal of emphasis on the history, something that Cooke does so very well.

An excellent book!

This book is a fascinating look at the history of mathematics, and is sure to inspire even the most devout haters of numbers.
Copyright © 2024 Thriftbooks.com Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information | Cookie Policy | Cookie Preferences | Accessibility Statement
ThriftBooks® and the ThriftBooks® logo are registered trademarks of Thrift Books Global, LLC
GoDaddy Verified and Secured