Which Books Combine Math and Nonfiction?

[Physics_wiz]

I'm mainly interested in nonfiction and books with some mathematical content to them. Maybe the author uses math to address the subject of the book or something..I find these books pretty interesting. I'd like to know what your favorite books are though even if they don't have any math in them, so...post the list!

 

[darkar]

I like to read comics. Does that count?

 

[Kerrie]

I love children's classics such as the Narnia Chronicles and the Madeline L'Engle books (A wrinkle in time, etc). Roald Dahl books such as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and James and the Giant Peach are always fun to read. Occassionally I will endulge in some Stephen King horror books as well. Most of the time however, I read books that teeter on the metaphysical level (that is when I have the time )

 

[TRCSF]

favorite fine literature: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.

Favorite guilty pleasures: George Martin's Fire and Ice series. And "Fire Upon the Deep" and "Deepness in the Sky" by Vernor Vinge.

I can't think of much about math except for a fiction book:

"The Curious Incident of the Dead Dog in the Night."

The author escapes me.

It's a sort of murder-mystery type plot told from the perspective of an autistic "idiot-savant." It's got just a little math.

But it's very good

 

[Mk]

Again, I will EXTREMELY HIGHLY recommend The Dark Tower series, by Stephen King.

Its the best book series I have ever read, and the seventh is the best book.

Its not scary, it is about Roland, a gunslinger, trying to get to the Dark Tower, the nexus of all universes.

 

[Smurf]

"A short history of nearly everything" is an excellent read. It touches on all the sciences and gives very good, very complete 'big picture' look at the sciences in our history, paticularly the last century or so. It's humourous too.

 

[Echo 6 Sierra]

On the road.

 

[Townsend]

"The Passion of the Western mind"
by Richard Tarnas

Talks about the history of western philosophy. It's interesting to say the least.

"How the Mind Works"
by Steven Pinker

Some mathematical ideas are talked about but not in any kind of depth.


"Journey through Genius"
by William Dunham

A lot of interesting math is discussed as well as the people who came up with the ideas.

"How to Solve It"
George Polya

Best math book I have ever read...well actually I am still reading it...but so far it is the best.

"The Golden Ratio"
by Mario Livio

An interesting look at the history and application of phi

That's all for now...

 

[zoobyshoe]

I'm going to second the reccomendation of the curious incident of the dog in the night-time by Mark Haddon because I think Physics_Wiz will enjoy it, not so much because there is a lot of math in it, but because the main character so much enjoys math and physics, and talks about them alot.

He is a high-functioning autistic teenager who undertakes to solve the "murder" of his neighbor's dog. It doesn't really end up being a murder mystery, but is more the story of his inability to understand everyone around him who isn't autistic, as is revealed by his encounters with them. It is told, convincingly, from his point of view.

 

[TheStatutoryApe]

I don't know many books involving math really but there are a couple that may fit the bill.
Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea by Charles Seife
It's a rather short whimsical history of the concept of the number Zero. It doesn't have much math in it but it is about math and interesting. You may already know most of what is in there though.

Fuzzy Logic by Daniel McNeill
Actually there isn't much math involved. It's a history and description of the concept of Fuzzy Logic. I think that it has a relation to mathematics though at least right?

 

[Physics_wiz]

I just got a copy of "Fooled by Randomness" by Nassim Taleb from the library. I've only read the first 25 pages or so but it looks like it's going to be a good read.

 

[JamesU]

you know, I was just going to start this thread on sunday

 

[loseyourname]

A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man is my all-time favorite. For non-fiction science writing, E.O. Wilson is a good author to read, although he's statistic-intensive and not the easiest read. Not mathematically oriented, either.

 

[Anttech]

"The Bridge" by Iain Banks, A scottish author.. Some people say he was the predesor of Irvine Welsh...

An Amazing Book, about a man in a Coma, and his dreams...

 

[Tzar]

Has everyone forgotten "A Brief history of time"?? Thats my fav non-fiction book.

When it comes to fiction: "A Catcher in the Rye" is a god sent

 

[selfAdjoint]

For math, a little advanced, there's Five Golden Rules