"e": The Story of a Number

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Princeton University Press, Jan 19, 2009 - Mathematics - 227 pages

The interest earned on a bank account, the arrangement of seeds in a sunflower, and the shape of the Gateway Arch in St. Louis are all intimately connected with the mysterious number e. In this informal and engaging history, Eli Maor portrays the curious characters and the elegant mathematics that lie behind the number. Designed for a reader with only a modest background in mathematics, this biography of e brings out that number's central importance in mathematics and illuminates a golden era in the age of science.

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About the author (2009)

Eli Maor is a teacher of the history of mathematics who has successfully popularized his subject with the general public through a series of informative and entertaining books. In "E: The Story of a Number," Maor uses anecdotes, excursions and essays to illustrate that number's importance to mathematics. "Trigonometric Delights" brings trigonometry to life by blending history, biography, scientific curiosities and mathematics to achieve the goal of showing how trigonometry has contributed to both science and social development. "To Infinity and Beyond: A Cultural History of the Infinite" explores the idea of infinity in mathematics and art through the use of the illustrations of the Dutch artist M.C. Escher. Eli Maor's readable books have made the world of numbers accessible even to those with little or no background in mathematics.

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