The fascinating history of mathematics

In The Fascinating History of Mathematics , young math prodigy Mickaël Launay shows that everyone loves math. The problem is, almost no one knows it.

In prehistoric times, mathematics was born to be useful. Numbers were used to count sheep in a flock. With geometry, it was possible to measure fields and draw roads. The story could end there, but over the centuries, Homo sapiens marveled at the winding paths of this sometimes abstract science. Of course, the history of mathematics was written by men and women of astonishing genius, but make no mistake: the true heroines of this "great novel" are ideas.

The small ideas that germinate deep within the brain propagate from one century to the next, from one continent to another, amplifying, developing, and revealing to us, almost without our even realizing it, a world of prodigious richness. You will discover that mathematics is beautiful, poetic, surprising, pleasurable, and captivating. The number pi is fascinating. The Fibonacci sequence and the golden ratio lead us to unexpected clues. Equations present us with challenges, and the infinitesimally small delightfully stirs our intelligence with its paradoxes.

If you've never understood math, or even hated it, why not give it a second chance? You might be in for a big surprise when you read The Fascinating History of Mathematics .