The book Cabinet of Mathematical
Curiosities was written by Mr. Ian Stewart. The front cover itself looks
interesting and appealing to the eyes. We all know that colorful covers on
books are attractive and the book never failed to do so. The book’s content is
composed of puzzles, games, and problems, and mathematical jokes. The book is
reader-friendly and may attract people of different ages. It is a good book for
someone who wants to delve in the mathematical realm or someone who just want
to have fun.
Though the past weeks was sucking
the energy from my body, it managed to bring smiles and delight to me. The
images coupled with various interactive games, quizzes, and puzzles had sparked
my interest. Stewart discussed the topics related to mathematics by making it
be easily understood by the readers. It really takes a mathematician to write
an audience-friendly book. Mainly, the book also tackles the adventures taken
by Stewart when he was on our actual age. Unlike the first books I read, this
book was deemed to be fun.
The first parts of the book
discussed how the author had a notebook stuffed with mathematical problems. The
author took the mathematics in a fun way instead of forcing himself to study
those equations and formula. He stressed that mathematics should be fun as it
promotes less stress and encourages our mind to think clearly. Thus, it leads
us to answer our inquiries. Interestingly, Stewart spent years filling his own
cabinet containing with lots of mathematical games, puzzles, stories and jokes.
Even his adventurous mind was carved in this symbolic “cabinet.”
The cabinet, similar to a treasure
containing with rare jewels and enormous wealth, contains games involving the
use of logic, geometry, and probability. Some topics featured in the books is
the formation of polygons using match sticks, a pop-up dodecahedron, and the
mystery why we can’t divide anything by zero. It was my first time to learn
some of the problems discussed by Stewart. Example is the problem with the
string, where it was tied as a loop and then looped around the fingers. Stewart
explained that once it was pulled away, the outcome is that the fingers will
not be entangled. Yet, I was fascinated with it. I even attempted to do it but
unluckily I ended up with difficulty.
I love geography. I like how I ended
in exploring cultures and other areas by just reading books or performing
researches. In relation to geography, Stewart introduced the color maps. There is
a way on how to color maps so that nearby cities will have the same color.
However, I find this one tricky since I am not fond of maps having one color
only [except for statistical analysis such as outcome of elections (e.g. US
Presidential Elections.)]
One of the most popular games played
in relation to match sticks (I know, handle with care) is to use them to form
polygons. This game was already encountered in the game activity introduced by
the Geometry group last February. In this game, set of match sticks are
connected from one another. In a given number of moves, the player must form
new polygons. I admit that I am very slow when it comes with these types of
games. However, I can accomplish a given puzzle to me. A player exemplifying a
degree of dexterity is advantageous for this type of game.
The succeeding chapters provided other
games. Among Stewart discussed is the knight’s move in a chess game, the pop-up
dodecahedron, Pythagorean triples, the reason why we cannot divide any number
to zero. I also got back the glimpse of the Poincare conjecture the chaos
theory and the P=NP problem which offers a million dollars who can solve the
problem. These topics were already discussed on the last series of the “Story
of Maths” by Professor Marcus du Sautoy.
The bridges of Konigsberg, which was
already tackled again in the “Story of Maths” came back in the scene. Stewart
elaborated that when a bridge’s path has been traced, it should have the
possibility of having even paths.
The Pythagorean triples were also
introduced. I have never heard of this topic, making it difficult for me to
decipher what it implies. Another game in the book is how to connect the wires
without crossing each other.
Overall, the book opened me to the
other wonders of mathematics. My time in
the past weeks almost prohibited me from reading the book. It helped me lift my
spirit as it allowed me to reminisce how fun to be a child again, where fun is the
only world revolving around them. Every game is like a riddle where it
challenged me to think deeply and the answer was very simple. This kind of book
is what the readers need to start loving mathematics. I am amazed how Ian
Stewart managed to form short stories and puzzles from his “cabinet.” The
cabinet is not just a furniture left to stand; it became the pillar
which revealed the existence of Ian Stewart’s childhood and the fun he had with mathematics. Collection
of these ideas is tedious and I commend the author for his dedication for
mathematics.
The pages of the book contained with
wonderful imagery coupled with fine texts of explanations were properly
managed. I really enjoyed reading the book. I might go back reading the book
and answer all the puzzles, quizzes, and games contained in it.
No comments:
Post a Comment