Read more
Zusatztext "It is packed with anecdotes and suitable for the general reader or historian. A range of themes are introduced in the preface raising the potential for a more specialized biographical insight. An enjoyable read and learning experience." ---Wallace A Ferguson, Mathematics Today Informationen zum Autor Donald J. Albers is senior acquisitions editor at the Mathematical Association of America. Gerald L. Alexanderson is the Michael and Elizabeth Valeriote Professor of Science at Santa Clara University. They are the editors of Mathematical People: Profiles and Interviews and More Mathematical People: Contemporary Conversations. Klappentext ""Fascinating Mathematical People" is a wonderfully varied collection. We meet brilliantly successful teachers! authors! a dentist! and two Fields Medal-winning Scandinavians. Some came from academic or intellectual families! another from a blazing-hot glass factory in Pennsylvania! and still another from an ancient and storied English aristocratic background. All of them had surprising side paths and detours on their way to mathematical success."--Reuben Hersh! coauthor of "Loving and Hating Mathematics" "This is a wonderful book."--Barry Cipra! coauthor of "What's Happening in the Mathematical Sciences" Zusammenfassung Top mathematicians talk about their work and lives Fascinating Mathematical People is a collection of informal interviews and memoirs of sixteen prominent members of the mathematical community of the twentieth century, many still active. The candid portraits collected here demonstrate that while these men and women vary widely in terms of their backgrounds, life stories, and worldviews, they all share a deep and abiding sense of wonder about mathematics. Featured here—in their own words—are major research mathematicians whose cutting-edge discoveries have advanced the frontiers of the field, such as Lars Ahlfors, Mary Cartwright, Dusa McDuff, and Atle Selberg. Others are leading mathematicians who have also been highly influential as teachers and mentors, like Tom Apostol and Jean Taylor. Fern Hunt describes what it was like to be among the first black women to earn a PhD in mathematics. Harold Bacon made trips to Alcatraz to help a prisoner learn calculus. Thomas Banchoff, who first became interested in the fourth dimension while reading a Captain Marvel comic, relates his fascinating friendship with Salvador Dalí and their shared passion for art, mathematics, and the profound connection between the two. Other mathematical people found here are Leon Bankoff, who was also a Beverly Hills dentist; Arthur Benjamin, a part-time professional magician; and Joseph Gallian, a legendary mentor of future mathematicians, but also a world-renowned expert on the Beatles. This beautifully illustrated collection includes many photographs never before published, concise introductions by the editors to each person, and a foreword by Philip J. Davis. Inhaltsverzeichnis Foreword by Philip J. Davis vii Preface ix Acknowledgments xiii Sources xv One: Lars V. Ahlfors 1 Two: Tom Apostol 17 Three: Harold M. Bacon 43 Four: Tom Banchoff 52 Five: Leon Bankoff 79 Six: Alice Beckenbach 96 Seven: Arthur Benjamin 107 Eight: Dame Mary L. Cartwright 129 Nine: Joe Gallian 146 Ten: Richard K. Guy 165 Eleven: Fern Hunt 193 Twelve: Dusa McDuff 215 Thirteen: Donald G. Saari 240 Fourteen: Atle Selberg 254 Fifteen: Jean Taylor 274 Sixteen: Philippe Tondeur 294 Biographical Notes 319 Glossary 321 Index 325 ...
