Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

IVARS PETERSON is an award-winning mathematics writer known for his popular books The Jungles of Randomness, The Mathematical Tourist, and Islands of Truth. He also writes about mathematics for Science News and Muse magazines.

NANCY HENDERSON is a freelance writer and editor whose articles have appeared in New Scientist, Science and Children, U.S. News & World Report, the Washington Post, and many other publications.

Von der hinteren Coverseite

Take the ride of your life in the MathZone!

There's a new amusement park in town. Come on in and find out all the exciting ways you can have fun with math in everyday life. Wander through the fractal forest, take a ride on the Möbius-strip roller coaster, and get dizzy learning about how math makes the Tilt-A-Whirl possible. The more activities you try, the more you'll learn how cool it can be to see the world through the eyes of a mathematician.

Once you've sampled some of the interesting and unique projects in Math Trek, from untangling unknots to winning games with weird dice to figuring out secret codes, you'll see that every trip to the MathZone is an exciting adventure!

Aus dem Klappentext

Take the ride of your life in the MathZone!

There's a new amusement park in town. Come on in–and find out all the exciting ways you can have fun with math in everyday life. Wander through the fractal forest, take a ride on the Möbius-strip roller coaster, and get dizzy learning about how math makes the Tilt-A-Whirl possible. The more activities you try, the more you'll learn how cool it can be to see the world through the eyes of a mathematician.

Once you've sampled some of the interesting and unique projects in Math Trek, from untangling unknots to winning games with weird dice to figuring out secret codes, you'll see that every trip to the MathZone is an exciting adventure!

Auszug. © Genehmigter Nachdruck. Alle Rechte vorbehalten.

Math Trek

Jossey-Bass

Contents

Preface........................................vii1 Do Knot Enter................................12 The MapZone..................................93 The Crazy Roller Coaster.....................195 Mersenne's Fun House.........................297 The Fractal Pond Race........................3911 Tilt-A-Whirl Madness........................5313 Luck on the Boredwalk.......................6317 The Code-Locked Door........................7319 The Wild Game Hall..........................8123 Way Out!....................................91Answers........................................99Glossary.......................................107Further Readings...............................109Index..........................................113

Preface

Whether math is your best or worst subject in school, we think you will enjoy visiting the MathZone and doing some of the things that mathematicians do.

Somewhere along the Interstate, where the highway is 19 lanes wide, stands a sign that says, "MathZone: Exit 11101101." The exit ramp is no simple cloverleaf; it winds around and crosses back over the highway, then twists under itself in a tangled roadway that ends up at a spiral-shaped parking lot.

From parking space 12358, a fractal-lined footpath leads to the MathZone amusement park. Go inside and climb the creaky Fun House stairs, scramble your senses on the Tilt-A-Whirl, bounce around like a pinball, or try your luck on the Boredwalk.

Whether you make the trek on your own, or with a friend, a parent, or a teacher, each MathZone adventure will take you deeper into the amazing world of modern mathematics. If you get stuck along the way, go to the back of the book to find the answers.

(Continues...)

Excerpted from Math Trekby Ivars Peterson Nancy Henderson Copyright © 2000 by Ivars Peterson and Nancy Henderson. Excerpted by permission.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.