Amusements in Mathematics

Fiction & Literature
Cover of the book Amusements in Mathematics by Henry Ernest Dudeney, anboco
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Henry Ernest Dudeney ISBN: 9783736405646
Publisher: anboco Publication: July 30, 2016
Imprint: Language: English
Author: Henry Ernest Dudeney
ISBN: 9783736405646
Publisher: anboco
Publication: July 30, 2016
Imprint:
Language: English

In issuing this volume of my Mathematical Puzzles, of which some have appeared in periodicals and others are given here for the first time, I must acknowledge the encouragement that I have received from many unknown correspondents, at home and abroad, who have expressed a desire to have the problems in a collected form, with some of the solutions given at greater length than is possible in magazines and newspapers. Though I have included a few old puzzles that have interested the world for generations, where I felt that there was something new to be said about them, the problems are in the main original. It is true that some of these have become widely known through the press, and it is possible that the reader may be glad to know their source. On the question of Mathematical Puzzles in general there is, perhaps, little more to be said than I have written elsewhere. The history of the subject entails nothing short of the actual story of the beginnings and development of exact thinking in man. The historian must start from the time when man first succeeded in counting his ten fingers and in dividing an apple into two approximately equal parts. Every puzzle that is worthy of consideration can be referred to mathematics and logic. Every man, woman, and child who tries to "reason out" the answer to the simplest puzzle is working, though not of necessity consciously, on mathematical lines. Even those puzzles that we have no way of attacking except by haphazard attempts can be brought under a method of what has been called "glorified trial"—a system of shortening our labours by avoiding or eliminating what our reason tells us is useless. It is, in fact, not easy to say sometimes where the "empirical" begins and where it ends.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

In issuing this volume of my Mathematical Puzzles, of which some have appeared in periodicals and others are given here for the first time, I must acknowledge the encouragement that I have received from many unknown correspondents, at home and abroad, who have expressed a desire to have the problems in a collected form, with some of the solutions given at greater length than is possible in magazines and newspapers. Though I have included a few old puzzles that have interested the world for generations, where I felt that there was something new to be said about them, the problems are in the main original. It is true that some of these have become widely known through the press, and it is possible that the reader may be glad to know their source. On the question of Mathematical Puzzles in general there is, perhaps, little more to be said than I have written elsewhere. The history of the subject entails nothing short of the actual story of the beginnings and development of exact thinking in man. The historian must start from the time when man first succeeded in counting his ten fingers and in dividing an apple into two approximately equal parts. Every puzzle that is worthy of consideration can be referred to mathematics and logic. Every man, woman, and child who tries to "reason out" the answer to the simplest puzzle is working, though not of necessity consciously, on mathematical lines. Even those puzzles that we have no way of attacking except by haphazard attempts can be brought under a method of what has been called "glorified trial"—a system of shortening our labours by avoiding or eliminating what our reason tells us is useless. It is, in fact, not easy to say sometimes where the "empirical" begins and where it ends.

More books from anboco

Cover of the book Little Black Sambo by Henry Ernest Dudeney
Cover of the book Lucian's True History by Henry Ernest Dudeney
Cover of the book The Mentor: Scotland, The Land of Song and Scenerld with Dwight L. Elmendorf by Henry Ernest Dudeney
Cover of the book The American Railway, its Construction, Development, Manage - Theodore Voorhees by Henry Ernest Dudeney
Cover of the book Tor, A Street Boy of Jerusalem by Henry Ernest Dudeney
Cover of the book Women of History: Selected from the Writings of Standard Authors by Henry Ernest Dudeney
Cover of the book Plays by Henry Ernest Dudeney
Cover of the book Edinburgh: Picturesque Notes by Henry Ernest Dudeney
Cover of the book A Little Bit of Fluff by Henry Ernest Dudeney
Cover of the book Old Country Life by Henry Ernest Dudeney
Cover of the book The Descent of Man and Selection in Relation to Sex II by Henry Ernest Dudeney
Cover of the book The cremation of the dead - considered from an ae-legal, and economical standpoint by Henry Ernest Dudeney
Cover of the book Five Years in the Alleghanies by Henry Ernest Dudeney
Cover of the book Mother Earth's Children: The Frolics of the Fruits and Vegetables by Henry Ernest Dudeney
Cover of the book Three Years in Tibet by Henry Ernest Dudeney
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy