| Book |
Author |
ISBN and purchase links |
Why we're recommending it
|
| The Music of the Primes: Searching to Solve the Greatest Mystery in Mathematics |
Marcus du Sautoy |
ISBN 978-0062064011, Amazon paperback |
This book is one of the best books for a general audience on the history 19th and 20th century mathematical research. It focuses on the Riemann Hypothesis, which is one of the most famous unsolved mathematical problems, but manages to tie together many different threads, which offers the reader a sense of perspective. Art of Problem Solving founder Richard Rusczyk named it one of his favorite math popularization books. Prerequisites: None.
|
| The Code Book: The Science of Secrecy from Ancient Egypt to Quantum Cryptography |
Simon Singh |
ISBN 978-0385495325, paperback |
This book gives a history of the mathematical field of cryptography, which has affected society on many levels. Prerequisites: One year of high school algebra.
|
| Journey through Genius: The Great Theorems of Mathematics |
William Dunham |
ISBN 978-0140147391, Amazon paperback |
This book presents highlights from the history of mathematics. In doing so, it gives a sense for mathematics as a human intellectual accomplishment. A number of mathematicians remember it as their favorite math book from their high school days. Prerequisites: Two years of high school algebra and high school geometry.
|
| Euler: The Master of Us All |
William Dunham |
ISBN 978-0883853283, Amazon paperback |
This book is a survey of some of the most significant work of Leonhard Euler, who's one greatest mathematicians who ever lived. Prerequisites: Calculus.
|