Tag: seriously_math

In Space, No One Can Hear You Ponder

Forget the stomach exploding, finger glowing, and shoulder-mounted lasers: this book is interested in a much more daunting task than just wondering if there are aliens somewhere.  Working on the premise that there must be, Life in the Universe: The Abundance of Extraterrestrial Civilizations by James N. Pierce is much more concerned with trying to calculate just how many there could be.  Working on surprisingly not-boring math, the author calculates the possibilities of how many civilizations may be in our galaxy, then takes it to the universe, and differentiates between aliens and alien civilizations.

It’s quite an interesting read, even if you’re just interested in flipping through it for his conclusion.  And, like all books featured, it is available for check out at the Billington Library.

Book of the DISBELIEF!

I whole heartedly disbelieve that Out of the Labyrinth: Setting Mathematics Free by Bob and Ellen Kaplan is entertaining.  BUT, there are math scholars and people who don’t care about math that tell me their work is phenomenal.  This cannot change the fact that it is about math, but it does prove that I am constantly wrong about math.  I am not good at it.  Therefore, if people who are right about math can recommend this to me, then I can strongly recommend this book to you.

It is sort of aimed at educators, but it is recommended for anyone who would like math to be interesting.  Like me.  So I’m going to peruse some of their other work with the Math Circle (these Kaplans are way famous).  If the Math Circle in practice or concept catches your attention, you might want to grab Out of the Labyrinth and turn some pages.