Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea

Questions About Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea

by Charles Seife

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Answered Questions (3)

is it worth reading?

Michael Curtis Yes. Some reviewers quibble over details and rhetoric, but the book covers a lot of math history, offers good explanations, and helped this non-mathem…moreYes. Some reviewers quibble over details and rhetoric, but the book covers a lot of math history, offers good explanations, and helped this non-mathematician better understand some math concepts.(less)

fascinating info, but is it enough to make a whole bookful of interesting reading?

Ambedkar Balasubramaniam Meganathan

This answer contains spoilers… (view spoiler)

At the end of Chapter 5 the author wrote on limits: "I have a wonderful proof of this, but alas, this book is too small to contain it." Which is a joke on Fermat's proof of his last theorem: "For this, I have found a truly wonderful proof, but the margin is too small to contain it." Does Charles Seife really have a proof or was he really just joking?

Paul Magnussen If he had a proof, he could just publish it online and put the URL in the book. So my guess would be that he’s joking.

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