Zum Hauptinhalt springen Zur Suche springen Zur Hauptnavigation springen
Beschreibung

A multifaceted biography of a brilliant mathematician and iconoclast

A mathematician unlike any other, John Horton Conway (1937–2020) possessed a rock star’s charisma, a polymath’s promiscuous curiosity, and a sly sense of humor. Conway found fame as a barefoot professor at Cambridge, where he discovered the Conway groups in mathematical symmetry and the aptly named surreal numbers. He also invented the cult classic Game of Life, a cellular automaton that demonstrates how simplicity generates complexity—and provides an analogy for mathematics and the entire universe. Moving to Princeton in 1987, Conway used ropes, dice, pennies, coat hangers, and the occasional Slinky to illustrate his winning imagination and share his nerdish delights. Genius at Play tells the story of this ambassador-at-large for the beauties and joys of mathematics, lays bare Conway’s personal and professional idiosyncrasies, and offers an intimate look into the mind of one of the twentieth century’s most endearing and original intellectuals.

A multifaceted biography of a brilliant mathematician and iconoclast

A mathematician unlike any other, John Horton Conway (1937–2020) possessed a rock star’s charisma, a polymath’s promiscuous curiosity, and a sly sense of humor. Conway found fame as a barefoot professor at Cambridge, where he discovered the Conway groups in mathematical symmetry and the aptly named surreal numbers. He also invented the cult classic Game of Life, a cellular automaton that demonstrates how simplicity generates complexity—and provides an analogy for mathematics and the entire universe. Moving to Princeton in 1987, Conway used ropes, dice, pennies, coat hangers, and the occasional Slinky to illustrate his winning imagination and share his nerdish delights. Genius at Play tells the story of this ambassador-at-large for the beauties and joys of mathematics, lays bare Conway’s personal and professional idiosyncrasies, and offers an intimate look into the mind of one of the twentieth century’s most endearing and original intellectuals.

Über den Autor
Siobhan Roberts is an award-winning science journalist and regular contributor to the New York Times. She is the author of The Man Who Saved Geometry and Wind Wizard (both Princeton).
Details
Erscheinungsjahr: 2024
Genre: Biographien, Importe
Rubrik: Belletristik
Medium: Taschenbuch
Inhalt: Einband - flex.(Paperback)
ISBN-13: 9780691266404
ISBN-10: 0691266409
Sprache: Englisch
Einband: Kartoniert / Broschiert
Autor: Roberts, Siobhan
Hersteller: Princeton University Press
Verantwortliche Person für die EU: Libri GmbH, Europaallee 1, D-36244 Bad Hersfeld, gpsr@libri.de
Maße: 198 x 131 x 29 mm
Von/Mit: Siobhan Roberts
Erscheinungsdatum: 29.10.2024
Gewicht: 0,56 kg
Artikel-ID: 128940009

Ähnliche Produkte