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Bernhard Riemann was an underdog of sorts, a malnourished son of a parson who grew up to be the author of one of mathematics' greatest problems. In Prime Obsession, John Derbyshire deals brilliantly with both Riemann's life and that problem: proof of the conjecture, "All non-trivial zeros of the zeta function have real part one-half." Though the statement itself passes as nonsense to anyone but a mathematician, Derbyshire walks readers through the decades of reasoning that led to the Riemann Hypothesis in such a way as to clear it up perfectly. Riemann himself never proved the statement, and it remains unsolved to this day. Prime Obsession offers alternating chapters of step-by-step math and a history of 19th-century European intellectual life, letting readers take a breather between chunks of well-written information. Derbyshire's style is accessible but not dumbed-down, thorough but not heavy-handed. This is among the best popular treatments of an obscure mathematical idea, inviting readers to explore the theory without insisting on page after page of formulae. In 2000, the Clay Mathematics Institute offered a one-million-dollar prize to anyone who could prove the Riemann Hypothesis, but luminaries like David Hilbert, G.H. Hardy, Alan Turing, André Weil, and Freeman Dyson have all tried before. Will the Riemann Hypothesis ever be proved? "One day we shall know," writes Derbyshire, and he makes the effort seem very worthwhile. --Therese Littleton
Book Description
In 1859, Bernhard Riemann, a little-known thirty-two year old mathematician, made a hypothesis while presenting a paper to the Berlin Academy titled “On the Number of Prime Numbers Less Than a Given Quantity.” Today, after 150 years of careful research and exhaustive study, the Riemann Hyphothesis remains unsolved, with a one-million-dollar prize earmarked for the first person to conquer it.
Alternating passages of extraordinarily lucid mathematical exposition with chapters of elegantly composed biography and history, Prime Obsession is a fascinating and fluent account of an epic mathematical mystery that continues to challenge and excite the world.
Customer Reviews:
A wonderful primer on a very complicated topic.......2007-09-22
Derbyshire's style of writing lends itself well to imagining this Brit-turned-American actually providing the audio track in your head. If you have a chance to catch his Radio Derb on Nation Review Online, you'll see what I mean.
The book is quite good at providing a historical survey of number theory, how natural numbers and primes work and how all this eventually relates to a very difficult, unsolved modern math puzzle: Riemann's Hypothesis. Through most of the book, Derbyshire does a good job explaining the fundamental math in play on the way to our modern understanding of the puzzle. In fact, I dare say these explanations are vastly superior to the ways most folks are taught math in schools and universities. There are points near the end where the math is so complicated for a newcomer that he makes explicit note to jump over some of these areas and provide the result of the jump. Probably a wise move but it does leave some wanting the full background.
On the whole, it's a great tour of a field of math (and a way of thinking) that eludes 99.99% of the populace -- but is now more accessible.
I was going to say that I hope he write more of these books to popularize advanced math. However, it seems he already has with a book on algebra: Unknown Quantity.
Very good popular book on a difficult subject.......2007-08-20
John Derbyshire is a British-born author. He originally studied mathematics at the university in England, though after graduation he would work on another jobs. Living now in the United States, for the last few years Derbyshire has been a right-wing (if usually unconventional) writer for the conservative magazine National Review. His first non fiction book deals with the Riemann hypothesis, one of the great unsolved problems in Mathematics. The book is divided into odd-numbered chapters (which contain the mathematical exposition, as simply as it can without compromising the subject matter) and even-numbered chapters (which deal with the historical and biographical background matter). I found the mathematical chapters fascinating, yet increasingly difficult, despite the author's efforts (I am not a mathematician). As to the historical chapters, they are superb, telling us the life and anecdotes of not just Bernhard Riemann (a truly towering genius of math, and someone who really went through a difficult and short life), but also of other great mathematicians, such as Euler, Gauss, David Hilbert and Edmund Landau. Strongly recommended.
I don't have a complain, a great book.......2007-06-11
It is always good to read a book on math with a mix of history. I think the author, John Derbyshire, accomplish in these pages the explanation of one of the unsolved problems in mathematics, the Riemman Hypotesis, in a fairly understandable way, maybe to all kind of audiences. This book is good and you can see it in its almost five star review.
Besides of being a mathematical biography, it is curious to see how mathematics developes in order to solve an equation, providing a glimpse on number theory and a introduction to mathematical thought. Whether solving this problem is useful or not, I think so, because it may help us in future endeavours. There is no doubt whatsoever, Riemann was an splendid mathematician.
Interesting read.......2007-05-31
I personally always find it interesting to learn about the person behind the discovery. Derbyshire develops the history of the Riemann Hypothesis while simultaneously developing the character of Riemann himself. This way, you acquire a wealth of knowledge about the mathematical problem AND learn about the reclusive and odd Riemann.
My only objection is that the narrative seemed to drag at times; otherwise, I found this book to be very interesting.
excellent history and overview, with some details omitted.......2007-04-12
The Riemann hypothesis is one of the greatest unsolved problems in mathematics, with a $1,000,000 bounty for its solution. Although the Riemann hypothesis is intimately related with prime numbers, one of the most elementary notions in mathematics, the statement of the Riemann hypothesis is much more difficult to understand. This book attempts to explain the meaning, significance, and history of the Riemann hypothesis, while assuming minimal math background, as one might get from a good high school education. In the introduction the author provocatively writes, "if you don't understand the [Riemann] Hypothesis after finishing my book, you can be pretty sure you will never understand it". I think that what the author means here is that he gives the most elementary possible treatment of the subject. However I think that his treatment is a bit TOO elementary for one to REALLY understand what the Riemann hypothesis says. For example, although the Riemann hypothesis concerns the zeta function of complex numbers, I don't think he ever actually defines the zeta function of a general complex number. Nonetheless, given the level at which he chooses to write, I think he does about as well as one could hope to convey the rough idea of what is going on from various points of view.
I should say here that my perspective is that of a professional mathematician who does not know much about the Riemann hypothesis.
The format of the book is interesting. Roughly speaking, odd numbered chapters explain math, while even numbered chapters present history, although the history chapters have a bit of math in them and vice-versa. I found the history chapters quite enjoyable. The math chapters are a mixed bag. Some parts review basic math; I skipped over those. Other parts introduce the key players in the Riemann hypothesis. There is excellent use of pictures and numerical evidence to motivate various theorems and conjectures. Because every other chapter is devoted to history, and because so much math needs to be introduced, it takes a long time to get to the heart of the matter, which appears near the end of the book. There is also a major speedup near the end, with more and more mathematical details omitted.
If the proof or disproof of the Riemann hypothesis is a mountain summit, and if the statement of the Riemann hypothesis and its connection with prime numbers is base camp, then this book leads us on a walk through the foothills while discussing the history of various people who have explored this mountain, and then makes a mad dash for base camp which ends up requiring a helicopter rescue.
The book overreaches a bit in discussing speculative connections of the Riemann hypothesis with physics. In doing so the book spends some time discussing eigenvalues of random matrices, without giving any clue what an eigenvalue is, so I don't know how much the target audience is going to get out of this. I think it would have been better to just say, "here is the distribution of the first 500 zeroes of the zeta function, here are 500 random numbers, notice that the spacing looks different, a similar spacing appears in physics via eigenvalues of random matrices, no one knows if this is a coincidence or if there is an actual connection, here is a reference where you can read more about this."
It would have been nice to include Riemann's original paper on the subject as an appendix. While only experts can understand this, it is pretty inspiring. (A translation with a few notes can be found for example in "God created the integers".)
Despite my nitpicking above, I heartily approve of this book, because I think that mathematics needs more popularization, and this book has done an admirable job with difficult material.
Also, silly as this is to say, I have become much more of a Riemann fan after reading this book. I use Riemann integrals, Riemann surfaces, Cauchy-Riemann equations, Riemannian geometry, etc. on an everyday basis, but I never paid attention to the fact that they all have the same name in them. His accomplishments are brilliant and spectacular and completely transformed mathematics.
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The indivisible man.(Book Review): An article from: American Scientist
Manufacturer: Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Society
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ASIN: B0008DPRGQ
Release Date: 2005-07-31 |
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This digital document is an article from New Criterion, published by Foundation for Cultural Review on April 1, 2003. The length of the article is 1551 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.
Citation Details
Title: Prime problem.(Prime Obsession: Bernhard Riemann and the Greatest Unsolved Problem in Mathematics)(Book Review) (book review)
Author: James Franklin
Publication:
New Criterion (Magazine/Journal)
Date: April 1, 2003
Publisher: Foundation for Cultural Review
Volume: 21
Issue: 8
Page: 82(4)
Article Type: Book Review
Distributed by Thomson Gale
Average customer rating:
- Not one of my favorites...
- Engaging, entertaining, and generally brilliant
- Love the post-wedding romance idea...
- Plenty wrong, but couldn't put it down.
- NEITHER POTENT NOR PLEASURES AT ALL
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Potent Pleasures
Eloisa James
Manufacturer: Island Books
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Binding: Mass Market Paperback
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Amazon.com
When the young Lady Charlotte Caverstill attends a local masked ball while on holiday in the countryside, she has no intention of dishonoring herself. But a handsome man ignites an unknown passion in her, and she finds herself willingly following him into the shadows of the garden. Before the night is over, Charlotte has surrendered her heart, as well as her virginity, to this man whom she doesn't know.
Though Alex McDonough Foakes spends the entire summer trying to track down the mysterious maiden from the masquerade ball, he cannot find her. Sent to Italy, he seeks solace in an ill-fated marriage, and returns years later a father, a widower, and a pessimist in love. When Alex meets Charlotte, he falls madly in love with her--despite his inability to recognize her--and proposes. She refuses. How can she marry a man who does not remember her after such an intimacy? And if she does, how can she explain her lack of virginity?
In this, her debut novel, author Eloise James takes special care to test and develop her characters in different situations. Unlike books with the familiar cart-before-the-horse plot, James does not restrict her characters to the bedroom; as Charlotte and Alex interact with friends and family in different arenas, they become more realistic and interesting. And though their motives are not always believable, the lovers appear to be a part of a greater world--one that will quickly capture the reader's imagination. --Nancy R.E. O'Brien
Book Description
Nothing is more seductive than temptation.
Reckless desire sends Charlotte Daicheston into the garden with a dashing masked stranger. He's powerful, unforgettable, a devastatingly handsome footman who lures her--not against her will--into a grand indiscretion at a masquerade ball. Then he vanishes.
Several years later, after Charlotte has made her dazzling debut in London society, they meet again. But the rogue is no footman. He's rich, titled, and he doesn't remember Charlotte. Worse, he's the subject of some scandalous gossip: rumor has it, the earl's virility is in question.
Charlotte, who knows all too intimately the power of his passion, is stunned by the gossip that has set society ablaze. At last, there can be a storybook ending...unless, of course, Charlotte's one mad indiscretion had not been with him at all....
Customer Reviews:
Not one of my favorites..........2006-12-18
...I agree with the other reviewers who dislike the hero (he's more of a jerk) and find the story disorganized, etc. I also thought it had too many unnecessary/uninteresting characters. I've read a few others by this author and would generally rate her books 3-4 stars. She's not a great writer and her plots really need work, but she can be entertaining. I didn't care for Alex either; he's hypocritical, judgemental, cruel and stupid, and I don't care how good-looking a guy is, he's got to have a little more than looks! And as for dumping his daughter with Charlotte, who he calls a whore, in Scotland - come on! That is just ridiculous. These novels are fiction, but even fictional characters have to act with some semblance of reality for the story to work for the reader. I did like Charlotte and got a kick out of Sophie. Had I been Charlotte I would have dumped Alex and gone after a nicer if less spectacular looking guy. She deserves better. I won't be reading any more of this series.
Engaging, entertaining, and generally brilliant.......2006-07-29
Both the characters and the story line are engaging and surprising, offering twists just when you think you've figured them out. Something that truly stands out as you read are the colorfulness of secondary characters, and the ease with which the author works them in.
The male lead, Alex, is extremely compelling and transfixes you, and the female lead, Charlotte, is likable while still maintaining an edge- you follow her transformation throughout the book, and love every minute.
This book is definitely a keeper, and one that will be read mant times over once you've been sucked into the wonderful world Eloisa James creates in 'Potent Pleasures'.
Love the post-wedding romance idea..........2006-05-04
James is great with coming up with novel plot ideas. I love that Charlotte and Alex fall in love after getting married. It creates for an interesting plot. The tension between the couple is exciting and different from the average regency romance. Pregnancy and the couples' reactions to it becomes part of the romance. It is nice to see how a love story can develop after a couple is wed. I also think that Charlotte is one of James's best heroines... she has a rich character outside of her relationship with Alex, making her seem like a well-rounded woman.
Plenty wrong, but couldn't put it down........2006-03-18
I felt I had to write a review with the several scathing reviews already written. There are too many characters and the author tends to go off on a tangent with many of them. The first meeting between Alex and Charlotte WAS slutty. How could he have sex with a complete stranger and it supposedly mean a lot to him, yet he never recognizes Charlotte later. I found myself skimming over the too long paragraphs that had little to nothing to do with the plot. HOWEVER, these problems were mostly in the first half. I nearly put the book away to never finish it. I am glad I stuck with it. The second half is what grabbed me and didn't let me put it down till finished. The second half of the book is emotionally wrenching and moves along swiftly. The ending saved the book for me. The birth scene was heartbreaking and the love scene 2 months later was redeeming for Alex.
If you can plod through the first half, you will enjoy the second half enough to make it worthwhile.
NEITHER POTENT NOR PLEASURES AT ALL.......2006-02-16
OMG, this book is neither POTENT nor PLEASURES at all! This is so far, THE WORST regency romance I have ever read. The anemic hero and the heroin are unreasonably stupid and utterly unattractive. The hero Alex is a lack-wit bully, and the heroin Charlotte is a lack-wit ninny and a passive victim. It seems the logic behind the story is ill-logical. I feel the author treated the readers as if we are retarded. There are too many uninteresting minor characters caused too much distraction, and there is also a lots of unnecessary details that put me to sleep. Ah, those forced and unwanted melodramatic tragic events frustrated me so much that I had to put the book away. The story does not flow well and lots of the dialogs are dull and dying small talks. The plots suck. The only lively character perhaps is Sophie. Indeed, it was not a pleasant read.
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Potent Pleasures (Vo Vlasti naslazhdeniia)
Manufacturer: Mockba
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: B000HAVUCA |
Product Description
Romance novel by Eloisa James translated into the Russian language.
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Potent Pleasures
Eloisa James
Manufacturer: Island Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000NQ1WBC |
Book Description
A stunning testament to his creative genius. Forward The Foundation is a the saga's dramatic climax -- the story Asimov fans have been waiting for. An exciting tale of danger, intrigue, and suspense, Forward The Foundation brings to vivid life Asimov's best loved characters: hero Hari Seldon, who struggles to perfect his revolutionary theory of psychohistory to ensure the survival of humanity; Cleon II, the vain and crafty emperor of the Galactic Empire,
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Swan's Palette
Manufacturer: Favorite Recipes Press (FRP)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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"Beloved by millions, The Foundation Series is widely regarded as the greatest science-fiction epic of all time. Each volume in this exquisite set contains magnificent full-color art by a distinguished science-fiction artist."
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Forward the Foundation (The Foundation Series)
Manufacturer: Easton Press
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Binding: Leather Bound
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BRAND NEW! Leather bound book accented in 22kt gold.
Book Description
In this groundbreaking book, Thomas G. Long—a theologian and respected authority on preaching—explores how Christians talk when they are not in church. Testimony breaks the stained-glass image of religious language to show how ordinary talking in our everyday lives— talk across the backyard fence, talk with our kids, talk about politics and the events of the day—can be sacred speech. In a world of spin, slick marketing, mindless chatter, and easy deceptions, Testimony shows that the hunger for truthful, meaningful, and compassionate speech is ultimately grounded in truth about God.
Customer Reviews:
An Invitation to Mention God More Often.......2005-11-26
Professor Thomas Long is well known as a major representative of Christian faith. He has served on the faculty of Princeton Theological Seminary and is currently the Bandy Professor of Preaching at Candler School of Theology, Emery University. Ever since the first time I heard him speak in 1987, his witness has blessed me. So too in this book, in which Dr. Long addresses the importance of talking about what we believe about God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit and the Church.
He starts the book with a wry observation made by a New Yorker, "At fashionable dinner parties in this town you can talk about anything... But if you mention God more than once, you probably won't be invited back." (Page 3). I have been to parties like that and perhaps you have as well. Where, when people find out that you are a follower of Jesus, they glaze over, say something like "How nice for you..." and then drift away.
Now, aside from the fact that we might want to avoid such fashionable dinner parties in madcap Manhattan, what Dr. Long is also saying to us: "Christians of the world, speak up and be heard!" And then he goes on to say how and why and what we might want to be talking about, in matters of faith, in everyday conversation. I like that. Saying what we believe is a gift, even an art-the well chosen word can attract, peek the interest, engage, encourage and convince the listener. You have that ability as you go about your day to day routine. Your faith can lead others to Christ and help them along life's narrow way. But only if you will speak up.
Dr. Long's book (one of the top ten best selling religious books of 2004) is not a book about personal witness or evangelism so much as it is on telling the truth about who God is, for us. He says that how God has engaged our life is a story that just has to be told: to our children, in the midst of meetings, when a friend has a bad medical diagnosis, when people are disagreeing about school policies, our the fence I the yard and yes, even at a dinner party. He also address the difference between a time to speak and a time to keep silence-as we honor both God and the person God has put us with, in the situation in which God has placed us.
My personal favorite portion of this book is on page 46, when he says this, "It has been said that if we really knew how to see with the eyes of our souls, we would see angels going before every person we meet, saying, `Make way for the image of God! Make way for the image of God!'" We know from John 3:16 that God loves us that much... would that we would love one another as God loves us all. So we could equally look at each person we meet and reminder ourselves, "Jesus died for him. Jesus died for her."
Dr. Long ends the book with a story that is the point of the entire book. Contained in it is the vital question: If someone were to hear you speaking, could they tell who you are? Could they tell that you are a child of God and a follower of Jesus?
If you find this review helpful you might want to read some of my other reviews, including those on subjects ranging from biography to architecture, as well as religion and fiction.
A Practical Guide to Christian Speech.......2005-09-29
Long urges us Christians to express our faith in words during the course of daily living. Long maintains that we as Christians can't tell the whole truth, without talking about God. And if we can't tell the whole truth, we can't be fully alive as human beings. He shows that we don't just say things we already believe, but we talk our way to faith. As we express our beliefs in what we say, we come more and more fully and clearly to believe. Hence his title: Testimony: Talking Ourselves into Being Christian. The church, he believes, is a language school in which we learn how to speak faithfully in the whole of our lives.
As one who is a firm believer but who is also shy of expressing my faith in words, I found this book helpful, not only in its persuasive eloquence but also in the numerous stories Long tells which show the way.
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e: The Story of a Number
