Tales of Physicists and Mathematicians [Paperback]

This revised and greatly expanded edition of the Russian classic contains a wealth of new information about the lives of many great mathematicians and scientists, past and present. Written by a distinguished mathematician and featuring a unique mix of mathematics, physics, and history, this text combines original source material and provides careful explanations for some of the most significant discoveries in mathematics and physics. What emerges are intriguing, multifaceted biographies that will interest readers at all levels.

Ars Magna (The Great Art).- Appendix: From De Vita Propria Liber (The Book of My Life).- Two Tales of Galileo.- I. The Discovery of the Laws of Motion.- II. The Medicean Stars.- Appendix: Olaf R?mers Conjecture.- Christiaan Huygens, Pendulum Clocks, and a Curve Not At All Considered by the Ancients.- Appendix: Part Five of Horlogium Oscillatorium.- Blaise Pascal.- Prince of Mathematicians.- I. Gauss Debut.- II. The Golden Theorem.- III. Royal Days.- Appendix: Construction Problems Leading to Cubic Equations.

This lively and entertaining book tells tales'' of Cardano, Galileo, Huygens, Pascal, Gauss.... The reasoning of the scientists discussed is modernized so as to ease the reader's path; thus this book is not a scholarly discussion of the history of science readable only by experts, but a far more valuable work: a readable introduction to the scientific work discussed and the historical context (both scientific and social) in which it took place. Addressed to a general audience, it deserves to have a wide one.... The author's own lucid style and accurate presentation translated into a smoothly flowing English make this book one which many, from college student to professional, will no doubt read with pleasure and learning. Zentralblatt MATH

The author discusses principal events in the history of science that deserve the attention of devotees of physics and mal³E