Category Archives: books

The First Six Books of the Elements of Euclid, by Oliver Byrne (Taschen)

Posted on January 11, 2020 by Brent

Recently for my birthday I received a copy of Oliver Byrne’s 1847 edition of Euclid’s Elements (pictured at right), republished by Taschen Books in 2010. I’ve only just started reading it, but it’s beautiful and fascinating. Oliver Byrne was a … Continue reading →

Posted in books, geometry, pictures | Tagged beauty, Byrne, color, design, elements, Euclid, illustration | 3 Comments

Book review: Tales of Impossibility

Posted on January 1, 2020 by Brent

[Disclosure of Material Connection: Princeton Press kindly provided me with a free review copy of this book. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions expressed are my own.] Tales of Impossibility: The 2000-Year Quest to Solve … Continue reading →

Posted in books, review | Tagged algebra, antiquity, circle, constructible, construction, cube, geometry, impossibility, polygon, problems, square, tales, trisect | 4 Comments

Book review: Opt Art

Posted on November 16, 2019 by Brent

[Disclosure of Material Connection: Princeton Press kindly provided me with a free review copy of this book. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions expressed are my own.] Opt Art: From Mathematical Optimization to Visual Design … Continue reading →

Posted in books, review | Tagged art, linear, opt, optimization | Comments Off

Book review: The Mathematics of Various Entertaining Subjects, Volume 3

Posted on October 31, 2019 by Brent

I have a bunch of books in the queue to review—I hope to begin writing these more regularly again! [Disclosure of Material Connection: Princeton Press kindly provided me with a free review copy of this book. I was not required … Continue reading →

Posted in books, review | Tagged book, entertaining, magic, mathematics, MOVES | Comments Off

Book review: An Illustrated Theory of Numbers

Posted on March 11, 2018 by Brent

[Disclosure of Material Connection: The AMS kindly provided me with a free review copy of this book. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions expressed are my own.] An Illustrated Theory of Numbers Martin H. Weissman … Continue reading →

Posted in books, review | Tagged book, diagrams, illustrated, number, textbook, theory | 1 Comment

Book reviews: The Joy of SET and Elements of Mathematics

Posted on March 14, 2017 by Brent

I have a couple of book reviews for you today! I finished both of these books recently and really enjoyed them. Though they are quite different, both gave me new ways to think about some topics I already knew, and … Continue reading →

Posted in books, review | Tagged book, elementary, game, Gordon, McMahon, review, SET, Stillwell | 1 Comment

Making tessellations

Posted on July 14, 2016 by Brent

I just received my copy of Tessalation!, a great new book written by Emily Grosvenor and beautifully illustrated by Maima Widya Adiputri, which I helped fund on Kickstarter. It’s about a girl named Tessa who goes exploring in her backyard … Continue reading →

Posted in books, geometry, pattern, pictures | Tagged blog, book, Tessalation, tessellation, tour, units | 9 Comments

Book review: Genius at Play

Posted on May 13, 2016 by Brent

Back in January I mentioned that I had been enjoying Siobhan Roberts’s new biography, Genius at Play: The Curious Mind of John Horton Conway. I finally finished it, and can now officially say that I really enjoyed it. This is … Continue reading →

Posted in books, people, review | Tagged biography, book, Conway, review | Comments Off

Book review: Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland

Posted on December 5, 2015 by Brent

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland: 150th Anniversary Edition Lewis Carroll Illustrated by Salvador Dalí Edited by Mark Burstein Princeton University Press, 2015 Recently Princeton University Press kindly sent me a review copy of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, recently republished in a … Continue reading →

Posted in books, review | Tagged Alice, Lewis, wonderland | 2 Comments