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4.27 AVERAGE
4.27 AVERAGE
Certainly didn't ever think I'd love a book about math, but I did! It's told almost like a 350 year long detective story with history and math woven in. Wonderfully written and no real math knowledge necessary.
informative
medium-paced
What an absolute page-turner this book turned out to be. While the book's title suggests its focus on the great puzzle left by Fermat, it is essentially about the history of Number Theory and the lives of mathematicians who dare to delve into this esoteric field. It is amazing that such an innocent-looking equation can cause so much distress to many generations of mathematicians. The author Simon Singh does a great job in laying out the foundation of many mathematical concepts that are later used by Andrew Wiles in finding the solution of Fermat's last theorem. I think even someone unfamiliar with the details of these mathematical concepts should be able to understand them based on the information provided by the author. I am glad that I stumbled upon this book. I particularly found the glimpses into the lives of Pythagoras, Euler, Galois, and Taniyama extremely fascinating, and hoping to read more about them.
slow-paced
Who doesn’t like some math with a side of proofs in a book?
The history behind math's most famous conundrum and all the different mathematicians who were involved was surprisingly interesting. It's a shame we don't get the fascinating why's or backstories of these historical characters in school - I wonder if I would have paid more attention to group theory had I known Galois tried to write down as much of his research as he could in one night, before a deadly duel at dawn he knew he would lose.
This book gives a glimpse of what mathematicians go through when they focus on one proof for 8 or more years, trying to beat math's biggest troll. Luckily you won't find too many equations in here, and those that are mentioned are explained well.
This book gives a glimpse of what mathematicians go through when they focus on one proof for 8 or more years, trying to beat math's biggest troll. Luckily you won't find too many equations in here, and those that are mentioned are explained well.
challenging
informative
medium-paced
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
Far more interesting and exciting than I would have expected. By the end it was a page-turner in way I didn't think was possible for a book about a mathematical proof.
This book is perfect if you want to read non-fiction as a person who prefers fiction. This book has a little something for everyone. It contains mathematics (although it's not necessary to understand it to enjoy this book), history, humor, and the heavy focus on the journey to solve fermats last theorem makes this read very much like fiction.
A quick read about mathematical history. Good information but not very fun.