Product Description
Walter Rudin's memoirs should prove to be a delightful read specifically to mathematicians, but also to historians who are interested in learning about his colorful history and ancestry. Characterized by his personal style of elegance, clarity, and brevity, Rudin presents in the first part of the book his early memories about his family history, his boyhood in Vienna throughout the 1920s and 1930s, and his experiences during World War II.Part II offers samples of his work, in which he relates where problems came from, what their solutions led to, and who else was involved. As those who are familiar with Rudin's writing will recognize, he brings to this book the same care, depth, and originality that is the hallmark of his work.Co-published with the London Mathematical Society beginning with Volume 4. Members of the LMS may order directly from the AMS at the AMS member price. The LMS is registered with the Charity Commissioners. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Portrait of a brilliant, deeply humane man
This is an inspirational and often moving biography of one of the great mathematicians of our century. Hadamard was not only a brilliant mathematician, but a stimulating mentor, a man of wide-ranging knowledge, insatiable curiosity, humility, and most of all, great humanity. When Japaninvaded Manchuria, he proposed that the League of Nations sendpeace-keeping forces there, only to face ridicule from the French press.Hadamard, more than most of us, deeply felt the tragic wastefulness of war.He lost two beloved sons in World War I. Of his son, Etienne, he once said:"what I did in mathematics is nothing compared to what he could do ifhe were alive today." (Half of the brilliant graduates of the EcoleNormale were killed in that war). I finished this book with feelings ofgratitude and regret--gratitude to Hadamard for sharing his remarkablegifts with such generosity, and deep regret that "fate" was sogrievously unfair to him.

Inspirational and moving
This is an inspirational and often moving biography of one of the great mathematicians of our century. Hadamard was not only a brilliant mathematician, but a stimulating mentor, a man of wide-ranging knowledge,insatiable curiosity, humility, and most of all, great humanity. When Japaninvaded Manchuria, he proposed that the League of Nations send peacekeepingforces there, only to face ridicule from the French press. Hadamard, morethan most of us, deeply felt the tragic wastefulness of war. He lost twobeloved sons in World War I. Of his son Etienne, he once said: "what Idid in mathematics is nothing compared with what he could do if he werealive today."(As the book points out, half the brilliant graduates ofthe Ecole Normale were killed in that war). I finished this book withfeelings of gratitude and regret--gratitude to Hadamard for sharing hisremarkable gifts with such generosity, and deep regret that"fate" was so grievously unfair to him. ... Read more

Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Product Description
Scientists, Mathematicians, and Inventors provides biographies of 200 men and women who changed the world by leaving lasting legacies in the fields of science, mathematics, and scientific invention. It fills a gap in the biographical reference shelf by offering far more than basic facts about a scientist's life and work: each entry describes not only the immediate effects of the individual's discoveries, but also his or her impact on later scientific findings. ... Read more

Product Description
This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process.We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide.We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Product Description
George Green was a pioneering 19th-century mathematical physicist, whose work influenced modern physics. He was by trade a miller, of scant formal education until most his finest work was complete. Then, at the age of 40, he went to Caius College, Cambridge, to read for a degree in mathematics. He was without public recognition during his lifetime, and it was Kelvin who saw the importance of his work and gave it wide publicity. Today, Green's function technique has been adapted to quantam mechanical problems in areas as diverse as nuclear physics, quantam electrodynamics and superconductivity. This biography's publication coincides with the bicentenary of Green's birth. ... Read more

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Arthur Cayley (1821--1895) was one of the most prolific and important mathematicians of the Victorian era. His influence still pervades modern mathematics, in group theory (Cayley's theorem), matrix algebra (the Cayley-Hamilton theorem), and invariant theory, where he made his most significant contributions. Yet Cayley's life has been overlooked by historians, who have lavished far more attention on lesser figures. Mathematician and biographer Tony Crilly, the world's leading authority on Cayley, rectifies this oversight with the first definitive account of his life.

Born in England, Cayley spent his childhood in St. Petersburg, where his father was a commercial agent. After returning to England in 1828, Cayley received a first-rate education. As an undergraduate at Trinity College in Cambridge, he was named "Senior Wrangler," the top mathematics student of his year. After graduating, he found himself at the vanguard of the revolution in British mathematics which included William Rowan Hamilton, George Boole, and James Joseph Sylvester. At the same time, needing a reliable income, he trained for the bar and became a barrister at Lincoln's Inn in 1849. Though a successful lawyer, Cayley devoted all his free time to mathematics and confirmed his reputation as one of the era's leading minds with a procession of brilliant articles on key aspects in pure mathematics. Only after 1863, when he was appointed to the Sadleirian Chair at Cambridge, could he fully pursue mathematical investigations, and he continued to publish influential papers until his death.

Comprehensive and elegantly composed, this biography makes clear the scope of Arthur Cayley's prodigious achievements, firmly enshrining him as the "Mathematician Laureate of the Victorian Age."

Customer Reviews (1)

A mathematical biography
You'll enjoy this book more if you're not mathematically knowledgeable because that's the audience it's written for. More than half the text deals with Cayley's mathematics but when the author feels it necessary to explain that a determinant is "a technical name given to a formula used to extract a single number from a spatial array", you can't expect deeper math topics to be treated with more than a superficial gloss. As a mathematician, I was disappointed in this book. ... Read more

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All scientific and technical developments and achievements we see now in the field of srtronomy, physics, chemistry, engineering and technology, medicine are the outcome of mathematical computation. ... Read more

Product Description
In this charming memoir, a renowned mathematician and winner of the American Book Award traces his career in mathematics from early lessons in horse racing and the realities of life to his adventures on the lecture circuit. A thought-provoking mix of autobiography, history, and insights into the role of mathematics in everyday life, this highly entertaining book will appeal to all readers. ... Read more

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In Which Door Has the Cadillac?, Andrew Vazsonyi reveals the personal side of a mathematician who passionately believes that the more people know about real-life math, the better their lives will be. Laced with offbeat humor and plenty of anecdotes, his memoir will be appreciated by readers interested in a lively, personal account of the world by someone who lives and breathes math.

As Carol J. Latta, executive director of the Decision Sciences Institute, says, “For over three decades, Andy Vazsonyi has shared his passion and genius for real-world math with his colleagues in the decision sciences community.His memoir reflects the combination of his extraordinary intellect and prevailing sense of humor.”

Martin K. Starr, Distinguished Professor of Management Science and Operations Management at Rollins College’s Crummer Graduate School of Business, says, “Andy’s memoirs are an unconventional trip to places you can never find again with people who remain great even though they are no more, in ways that only Andy’s mind can fashion.” ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

pretty darn good
A nice, fun autobiography. Not as good as "Surely you are Joking, Mr. Feynman", but quite entertaining. Andrew is basically a guy who started off as a 'pure' mathematician who 'sold out' to do stuff that is actually useful (due to circumstances) and has grown to love what he did as he went along applying mathematics to 'real life'. On top of it he had about at least 4 careers, going from and aerodynamics engineer for one of the early missle programs to a managment consultant to a marketing wiz to a professor. Combining this with his 'Marsian-Hungarian' background this makes for a lot of interestiong stories.

An Excellent Read!
I just finished Which Door Has the Cadillac.As far as I know it is the first autobiography written by a modern mathematician, as the others are biographies.Vazsonyi has written a fast-paced, humorous, and engaging story of his life.I was moved by his personal struggles to escape Hungary before the Nazi onslaught. Interesting anecdotes of his encounters with notable and not-so-notable people, such as Paul Erdos and Zepartzatt Gozinto, made it difficult to set the book down. My vision of math has been expanded by Vazsonyi's quirky and yet grounded examples. The probabilities associated with the Cadillac problem are excitedly counterintuitive. It doesn't surprise me that even Paul Erdos was fooled by this problem.My favorite chapter was The Galloping Fighter Plane.All and all an excellent read!

What an Amazing Life
What an interesting book from a man who has lived through the most momentous moments of the 20th century!

Don't worry --- this isn't a math book; it's the memoirs of Andrew Vazsonyi's journey from pre-war Hungary to modern-day California, and the ways that math has helped him to solve real problems, and have fun.

The style is easy and fun.Highly recommended. ... Read more

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"Extremely readable recollections of the author... A rare testimony of a period of the history of 20th century mathematics. Includes very interesting recollections on the author's participation in the formation of the Bourbaki Group, tells of his meetings and conversations with leading mathematicians, reflects his views on mathematics. The book describes an extraordinary career of an exceptional man and mathematicians. Strongly recommended to specialists as well as to the general public."

EMS Newsletter (1992)

"This excellent book is the English edition of the author's autobiography. … This very enjoyable reading is recommended to all mathematicians."
Acta Scientiarum Mathematicarum (1992)

Customer Reviews (5)

The recollections of a great mathematician
The title is a little misleading since there is not much math in the book, but a lot of personal stories about the intellectual life and travels of A. Weil. Through them we can glimpse his personality and thus the book will be interesting to mathematicians and historians of mathematics. The reader can detect a completely undogmatic mind, skeptical about justice and politics and with a rather ironic sense of humour. His stay in jail for not reporting for duty at the start of WWII was one of his most productive periods.

He recalls, but he is not able to give a concrete date, the day when H. Cartan and he founded Bourbaki. One of the funniest anecdotes is when Cartan receives a call from a Greek whose name is Bourbaki thinking it is a joke, but they become friends and he is even invited to some of their meetings.

A. Weil was not only an outstanding mathematician but a man of a wide culture and a polyglot. He studied sanskrit to read the great books of Indian literature and spent a couple of years in India. Another interesting story is when he is taken by a Russian spy in Finland and he is saved in extremis from execution by a chance meeting of Nevalinna with the chief of police.

He eventually moved to the US, although the first years must have been very frustrating teaching at second rates colleges where when he provided a proof the students would ask: "Is it going to be in the exam?"

The book ends in the fifties when he is appointed a professor at the University of Chicago after a stay in Sao Paulo.

To sum up, a fascinating personality that had a fascinating although not always easy life.

Light reading!
There is only a small number of autobiographies by mathematicians. Andre Weil was a giant in math. His autobio, written late in life, is fun to read. Weil has strong opinions that may perhaps not appeal to all. Even so, the book light reading, agreeing or not; and it fun too. For me it was a page-turner. To others perhaps a little pompous. Judge for yourself. While perhaps self-absorbed, I think Weil in his autobio gives personal and fresh insight into the tumultuous period in history, between the two World Wars in Europe, as it relates to math. The main part of the book covers Weil's life before he came to the US.
Weil had a monumental impact on math, and he also wrote some lovely history of math books, --number theory; and then of course some specialized books, that are corner stones in math, but not especially easy to read, at least for beginners. But Andre Weil is a central figure in math. His younger sister Simone Weil was an author and philosopher, and a political activist on the left in French politics in the 1930ties. She died young.

Light reading!
There is only a small number of autobiographies by mathematicians. Andre Weil was a giant in math. His autobio, written late in life, is fun to read. Weil has strong opinions that may perhaps not appeal to all. Even so, the book light reading, agreeing or not; and it fun too. For me it was a page-turner. To others perhaps a little pompous. Judge for yourself. While perhaps self-absorbed, I think Weil in his autobio gives personal and fresh insight into the tumultuous period in history, between the two World Wars in Europe, as it relates to math. The main part of the book covers Weil's life before he came to the US.
Weil had a monumental impact on math, and he also wrote some lovely history of math books, --number theory;and then of course some specialized books, that are corner stones in math, but not especially easy to read, at least for beginners. But Andre Weil is a central figure in math. His younger sister Simone Weil was an author and philosopher, and a political activist on the left in French politics in the 1930ties. She died young.

Quite some autocensorship
Weil did indeed lead a colorful life, and he certainly was a dominant figure in maths. But if one writes an autobiography, he should be honest when speaking both of his best and his worst. Unlike this, Weil strictlyrestrains from the reader the chapters of his life which he is not so proudof. I will name just two. First, in the book his wife (with a young sonfrom her previous marriage) simply occurs in his life, and the reader isnever told how and where they met, and who was the husband she abandonedbecause of this acquaintance (I here only comment that it was anotherFrench mathematician of the period, and earlier a friend of Weil, but he isnot mentioned anywhere in the story). And second, his evading the militaryservice; surely, most of us do not want to die, but to explain that we donot want to serve because we have a hinduistic view of the World is anoverused trick (though perhaps it was not overused in those times). One sodevoted to that view would definitely not feel at home in Princeton. Inaddition, in his well-known style Weil is extremely critical of theprofessional qualities of practically everyone, with exception of his"family" - the Bourbaki. Most of the textbooks by other peoplewere awful, the knowledge of most other people catastrophicallyincomplete.

Still, there are some interesting facts for those who want toknow what a life of a mathematician can involve, and two stars are justlyearned. Perhaps this would have been a better book has it been written morein the spirit of Hardy's Apology, omitting the family matters and focusingon what the title promises.

Excellent!
Weil led a colorful, fascinating life.He became a well-known mathematician at an early age, and mastered several languages.Additionally, he traveled around the world, and narrowly escaped execution. His autobiography allows the reader to come to know him for himself,rather than for his work.If the reader pays close attention, he/she willsee his subtle humor, which is cleverly woven in to his life story. ... Read more

Product Description
The biography of mathematician Laurent Schwartz in the context of his century. Aims to provide readers with a sense of the import of his work and his achievements, and his extraordinary abilities as a thinker and mathematician. Also documents the scholar's commitment to social causes such as the civil rights movement and the Vietnam war. Softcover. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Grappling is the word
This book is as fascinating to anyone interested in mathematics as any other mathematician's biography, with the extra asset of his life being deeply imbedded in 20th century history. While it gives a most interesting account of the French and international mathematical world during the second half of the century (especially on Bourbaki and, of course, on the distributions), it also tales the story of a "committed" (formerly trotskist) intellectual who valued his struggle for decolonization as highas his mathematical work. ... Read more

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This book traces the history of the MIT Department of Mathematics one of the most important mathematics departments in the world through candid, in-depth, lively conversations with a select and diverse group of its senior members. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Well done book of interviews of MIT mathematicians
If you are interested in people who do math, the history of mathematics, or have taken any math at MIT, this book is probably for you.

An intriguing look at mathematics and the men behind it
Though never in the eye of popular culture, these men kept society advancing with their minds. "Recountings: Conversations with MIT Mathematicians" is a collection of interviews and anecdotes from the geniuses of MIT who have pursued mathematics as their life's careers and obsessions. These men have been responsible for major scientific advances throughout history and picking their minds in a volume that's more interesting than one could think math class could ever be. "Recountings" is an intriguing look at mathematics and the men behind it.
... Read more

Product Description
A³ & HIS ALGEBRA is the true story of a struggling young boy from Chicago’s west side who grew to become a force in American mathematics. For nearly 50 years, A. A. Albert thrived at the University of Chicago, one of the world’s top centers for algebra. His “pure research” in algebra found its way into modern computers, rocket guidance systems, cryptology, and quantum mechanics, the basic theory behind atomic energy calculations.

This first-hand account of the life of a world-renowned American mathematician is written by Albert’s daughter. Her memoir, which favors a general audience, offers a personal and revealing look at the multidimensional life of an academic who had a lasting impact on his profession.

Customer Reviews (2)

A childhood friend's view
Nancy Albert has been a dear friend since we were five years old so I knew her parents, both kind, loving people. We had no idea of her father's accomplishments.To us kids he was a quiet, soft spoken man, always smiling, always reading something. I am so proud of Nancy for her massive research and ability to put it all together in a style those of us less knowledgeable in mathematics can understand.A major plus was bringing back memories of our childhood in Chicago. Thank you, Nancy.From your sister in spirit, Mibs

What Mathematicians Do and A Father Fondly Remembered
I enjoyed this book very much.Many carefully researched details recreate the times and places mentioned.Personal observations and insights give the feel of an intimate memoir.The book is very well written and gives the feel and excitement of mathematics without going into the details so it is fully readable and enjoyable by persons without any mathematics background.It takes the reader from the depression through World War II, the Korean War, The Vietnam War, right up to the 1970s, all from the point of view of a mathematician and his family.Very interesting for those who lived through it and enlightening for those who didn't.This is the best book I've read for giving a picture of what mathematicians do.It may even inspire some young people to study mathematics seriously.To me (a retired mathematician) the mention of certain theorems awoke a nostalgia and almost made me want to start all over again and perhaps understand things deeper and better.As Nancy Albert says "mathematics is a beautiful but never fully attainable mistress". ... Read more

Product Description
The first of four volumes in the landmark Lives and Legacies Oryx Press series, Scientists, Mathematicians, and Inventors profiles approximately 200 men and women who changed the world by leaving lasting legacies in their fields. It fills a gap in the biographical reference shelf by offering far more than basic facts about a scientist's life and work--each entry describes not only the immediate effects of the individual's discoveries, but their impact on later scientific findings as well. Each entry contains a timeline listing important dates in the biographee's life as well as a bibliography of the most important works on the subject. A master timeline chronicling major events in scientific exploration and an annotated general bibliography are also included. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Excellent
One of the best and most concise books detailing scientists and engineers that have changed the world.If you have a friend or relative that is into science, buy them this book. ... Read more

Product Description

Here, in this first biographical study of James Joseph Sylvester, Karen Hunger Parshall makes a signal contribution to the history of mathematics, Victorian history, and the history of science.

A brilliant Cambridge student at first denied a degree because of his faith, Sylvester came twice to America to teach mathematics, ultimately becoming one of Daniel Coit Gilman's faculty recruits at Johns Hopkins in 1876 and winning the coveted Savilian Professorship of Geometry at Oxford in 1883. He held professorships of natural philosophy, worked as an actuary, was called to the bar, and taught mathematics to cadets training for engineering and artillery posts in the British Army. During his long, distinguished career he also edited England's Quarterly Journal of Pure and Applied Mathematics and established the American Journal of Mathematics, the first sustained mathematics research journal in the United States.

Situating Sylvester's life within the political, religious, mathematical, and social currents of nineteenth-century England, Parshall penetrates the myth of this venerated figure, revealing how he lived, the choices he made and why, how the world in which he lived affected him -- and how he affected that world. The story of Sylvester's life sheds light on the evolution of mathematical thought. It also examines the ways in which mathematics may be done and what factors may shape a mathematician's ideas. Parshall explores the development of academic professionalization, nineteenth-century mathematical culture, and the emergence of modern algebra as a mathematical discipline. She highlights the human side of what many view as that most arcane and otherworldly of intellectual endeavors, mathematics, which indeed answers to such diverse factors as religion, ego, and depression.