What's the best math literature to read, whether fiction or non-fiction, for cultivating mathematical thinking? I have reserved "The Math Book" under DK Big Ideas Simply Explained series from my local library. Please identify the book level and the scope it covers. Thanks for your recommendation.
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Mathematical thinking or gene?
- Thread starter Jose Z
- Start date
The best book to learn mathematical thinking is a mathematics textbook. If you start with an introductory book on number theory or topology, you will automatically learn it.
If you are interested in the subject in general, then you could read a book about the history of mathematics. I can recommend Jean Dieudonné in this regard.
Also, I have written various articles that you can find online if you are interested in context, e.g., about Fermat's last theorem. These are related to specific subjects and can be considered as appetizers to make you curious rather than textbooks.
If you are interested in cheap sources for studying the basics, you could find books on the server of Rice University.
There are also single examples that can be recommended:
The first thing I thought of when reading your question was logic. However, I would avoid books on logic. They are highly technical. I have a book about set theory, which is very entertaining. It isn't meant to teach you set theory, but rather to demonstrate the oddities of set theory, like Hilbert's Hotel or space-filling curves. However, it isn't in English.
There are many ways to cultivate mathematical thinking. The question should be what you want to achieve and why. You see from my examples the wide range of it: entertaining, basics, history, context, or study.
If you are interested in the subject in general, then you could read a book about the history of mathematics. I can recommend Jean Dieudonné in this regard.
Also, I have written various articles that you can find online if you are interested in context, e.g., about Fermat's last theorem. These are related to specific subjects and can be considered as appetizers to make you curious rather than textbooks.
If you are interested in cheap sources for studying the basics, you could find books on the server of Rice University.
There are also single examples that can be recommended:
The first thing I thought of when reading your question was logic. However, I would avoid books on logic. They are highly technical. I have a book about set theory, which is very entertaining. It isn't meant to teach you set theory, but rather to demonstrate the oddities of set theory, like Hilbert's Hotel or space-filling curves. However, it isn't in English.
There are many ways to cultivate mathematical thinking. The question should be what you want to achieve and why. You see from my examples the wide range of it: entertaining, basics, history, context, or study.
I genuinely appreciate your help! I couldn't agree more with your sharing on formal logic and any introductory books on any subfield of mathematics. I took all the courses in the other post except for statistics, Logic and Reasoning, instead of a rigorous math course with proofs.
However, I found something missing from the past. I mean, I had been working on math questions for days, even dreaming about them. I could have blamed it on the weird turns in life. Nonetheless, from the book I read recently titled "Once upon a prime: the wondrous connections between mathematics and literature and an introductory philosophy course, I believe it's time to rekindle my passion for math.
Maybe I am simply another seeker of Truth, desiring to breathe in the air of a timeless discipline that flows through every part of our lives.
Thanks again for your invaluable recommendation on these resources.
However, I found something missing from the past. I mean, I had been working on math questions for days, even dreaming about them. I could have blamed it on the weird turns in life. Nonetheless, from the book I read recently titled "Once upon a prime: the wondrous connections between mathematics and literature and an introductory philosophy course, I believe it's time to rekindle my passion for math.
Maybe I am simply another seeker of Truth, desiring to breathe in the air of a timeless discipline that flows through every part of our lives.
Thanks again for your invaluable recommendation on these resources.