 Mathematics
Reading List
The following is a list of books that you might find useful to buy or
borrow from a library (some may be out of print). Be selective, but try
to find ones that challenge your mathematical thinking. The list is in
the following sections:
Study Skills
Mathematics Revision
Popular Texts
More Challenging Mathematical Texts
Use the comments button to email comments and star rating (1–5) or
suggestions for additions to this list.
Cottrell. S.
(1999) The Study Skills Handbook, Macmillan Press Ltd, Basingstoke
& London. A general guide to study skills with useful checklists
Kahn. P. (2001) Studying Mathematics and its Applications, Palgrave,
Wokingham. Advice on how to study and apply complex mathematical ideas with
exercises and extension material..
Northedge. A., Thomas. J., Peasgood. A. (1997) The Sciences Good Study
Guide, The Open University, Milton Keynes. A study guide for students
of science, technology and engineering with a basic (sub A–level) mathematics
help section.
Abbott, P. (1996)
Teach Yourself Algebra, Teach Yourself, London
Abbott, P. Neill, Hugh (1997) Teach Yourself Calculus, Teach Yourself,
London
Abbott, P. Neill, Hugh (Ed) (1998) Teach Yourself Trigonometry, Teach
Yourself, London
Graham, Alan (1999) Teach Yourself Statistics, Teach Yourself, London
Graham. L., Sargent.D., (1981) Countdown to Mathematics Vol 1 and
Vol 2, Addison–Wesley Publishers Ltd in association with Open University
Press, Wokingham. Vol 1 arithmetic, simple algebra, graphs, representing
data; Vol 2 algebra, trigonometry.
There are plenty of other mathematics textbooks around; look in bookshops
and libraries until you find one that suits your needs (maybe lots of practice
exercises at your level and beyond, perhaps offering straightforward or
multiple explanations). Some revision guides can be succinct yet informative
enough to refresh your understanding
Wider mathematical
reading
Acheson,
D (2002),1089 and all that, Oxford University Press, Oxford. A little
book of mathematical puzzles and other delights.
Barrow, John
D. (1993) Pi in the Sky: Counting, Thinking and Being, Penguin, London.
The author discusses rival views of where maths comes from and how it is
done.
Blastland, M (2007) The Tiger that Isn't, Profile Books, London.
Illustrates how to understand numbers in the media with many everyday
examples.
Doxiadis, Apostolos (2000) Uncle Petros and Goldbach’s Conjecture
Faber & Faber, London. Though this is a work of fiction, it is a story
of the search for a solution to a famous problem and of the possible pitfalls
in a research project that is too restricted in its outlook. There is a
mix of humour, pathos and mathematics.
Eastaway, Rob & Wyndham, Jeremy (1998) Why Do Buses Come in Threes?,
Robson Books, London. Practical uses for probability theory, Fibonacci series,
matrices, Venn Diagrams, prime numbers and more.
Eastaway, Rob & Wyndham, Jeremy (2002) How long is a piece of string?,
Robson Books, London. More on the hidden mathematics of everyday life.
Flannery, Sarah (2000) In Code: A Mathematical Journey, Profile Books,
London. This is a book about growing up in a mathematical household written
when Sarah was a teenager. It includes some problems with solutions and
explanations.
Guillen, Michael (1995) Five Equations that Changed the World, Abacus,
London. Tells the stories of five of the most important mathematicians and
scientists in history and gives the background to their discoveries of ‘world
changing’ equations.
Guedji, Dennis (1998) Numbers the Universal Language, Thames &
Hudson, London. Small book with good illustrations and extracts from historic
documents.
Hoffman, Paul (1998) The Man Who Loved Only Numbers, Fourth Estate,
London. The story of Paul Erdös and the search for mathematical truth
Huntley, H.E. (1970) The Divine Proportion A Study in Mathematical Beauty,
Dover, New York. Topics more or less directly connected with the ‘Golden
Section’ or ratio.
Ifrah, Georges (1998) The Universal History of Numbers, The Harvill Press,
London. About the history of numbers and counting from pre–history
to the age of computers.
Paulus, John Allen (1990) Innumeracy Mathematical Illiteracy and its
Consequences, Penguin, London.
Real–world examples of innumeracy – stock scams, medical claims,
risk perception, election statistics and more.
Peterson, Ivars (2001) The Mathematical Tourist: New and Updated Snapshots
of Modern Mathematics, Palgrave, Basingstoke.
Pólya.G (1990) How to Solve It, Penguin, London. The classic text
on mathematical problem solving with helpful forward by Ian Stewart.
Salsburg, D (2001) The Lady Tasting Tea, Henry Holt and Co., New York. The story of twentieth century statistics
Singh, Simon (2000) The Code Book Fourth Estate, London. A history
of codes and ciphers and their modern applications in internet security.
Singh, Simon (1998) Fermat’s Last Theorem Fourth Estate, London.
An account of Andrew Wiles’ proof of Fermat’s Last Theorem, but
it touches on many of the problems that have interested mathematicians over
the centuries.
Stewart, Ian (1996) From Here to Infinity, Oxford University Press,
Oxford. An introduction to how mathematics is developing today, it shows
how many ideas, old and new, can be important in answering questions in
today’s world.
Stewart, Ian (1997) Does God Play Dice? Penguin, London. An introduction
to the field of chaos, it gives an insight into the mathematics behind fractals
as well as many other situations where you can find chaotic behaviour.
Stewart, Ian (1998) The Magical Maze: seeing the world through mathematical
eyes, Orion Paperback , London.
Stewart, Ian (1998) Nature’s Numbers: discovering order and pattern
in the universe, Orion Paperback, London.
Wilson, Robin (2002) Four Colours: How the Map Problem was Solved,
Allen lane Science. An account of proving the four–colour conjecture
that has at last been achieved with the aid of a computer.
Courant R. and
Robbins, H. (revised by Ian Stewart) (1996) What is Mathematics?
Oxford University Press, Oxford. This is a classic book, covering a broad
spectrum of fundamental mathematical ideas. It has been updated to describe
mathematical developments such as the proof of the Four Colour Theorem and
Fermat’s Last Theorem.
Fauvel, John & Gray, Jeremy (1987) The History of Mathematics: A
Reader, Macmillan Education with The Open University, Basingstoke. Readings
from a wide variety of sources to show the nature and development of mathematics
from the earliest time to the twentieth century.
Hogben, Lancelot (1968) Mathematics for the Millions, The Merlin
Press, London. From pre–history arithmetic to calculus with exercises
and problems.
Gardner, Martin (2001) The Colossal Book of Mathematics, Norton,
New York & London. Number theory, algebra, geometry, probability, topology,
game theory, infinity, and other topics of recreational mathematics.
Kuhn, Harold W (Ed) (2002) The Essential John Nash, Princeton University
Press. This book explains Nash’s work and reprints his most famous
papers.
Simmons, George F. (1991) Calculus Gems: Brief Lives and Memorable Mathematics
McGraw–Hill, Berkshire. This book includes brief lives of 33 important
mathematicians. They are followed by 26 notes on significant moments in
maths, from Pythagoras’ theorem to rocket propulsion.
Mathematics
reference
Dictionaries
There are several
mathematical dictionaries available. Some are more technical, giving definitions
in symbols and words, whereas others give explanations in words and include
short biographies of mathematicians. Choose one that suits you.
Last updated 01 March 2010
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