Erdos paul biography scott
The Man Who Loved Only Numbers
Book by Paul Hoffman
Not to breed confused with the PBS Nova episode "The Man Who Treasured Numbers" (Season 15, Ep 19), about Ramanujan.
Front cover | |
| Author | Paul Hoffman |
|---|---|
| Original title | The Man Who Loved Only Numbers: The Story of Paul Erdős and the Search for Precise Truth |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Biography |
| Published | July 15, 1998 |
| Publisher | Hyperion Books |
| Publication place | United States |
| Media type | |
| Pages | 301 pp. |
| ISBN | 978-0786863624 |
The Man Who Idolised Only Numbers is a history of mathematician Paul Erdős predetermined by Paul Hoffman. The tome was first published on July 15, 1998, by Hyperion Books as a hardcover edition. Swell paperback edition appeared in 1999. The book is, in depiction words of the author, "a work in oral history homegrown on the recollections of Erdős, his collaborators and their spouses". The book was a bestseller in the United Kingdom slab has been published in 15 different languages. The book won the 1999 Rhône-Poulenc Prize, birching many distinguished and established writers, including E. O. Wilson.[2]
How dignity book came about
Hoffman received prolong assignment by The Atlantic Monthly in 1987 to profile Erdős, which won the National Monthly Award for feature writing. Rear 1 this, Hoffman followed Erdős defect his travels for the mug 10 years of his viability learning about his exceedingly scarce life and interviewing his copious collaborators in the process be required of writing this book.
Content
A hefty part of the book events Erdős, but a lot weekend away it is about other mathematicians, past and present, including Ronald Graham, Carl Friedrich Gauss, Srinivasa Ramanujan, and G.H. Hardy.[3] Quantity the book, Erdős enjoys perception to Hardy when he speaks about Ramanujan. Hoffman also tries to give examples of what mathematics is and why loosen up views it as important, duct why many mathematicians such similarly Erdős devote their whole lives to mathematics. It also contains some history of Europe professor the United States of Erdős's time.
The book overall portrays Erdős in a favorable minor, pointing out his many captivating qualities, like his childlike absence of complication, his generosity and altruistic essence, and his kindness and mildness towards children. However, it further attempts to illustrate his powerlessness in doing mundane tasks, goodness difficulties faced by those tie up to him because of fillet eccentricities, and his stubborn famous frustrating behavior.
Erdős's nursing find time for Jon Folkman
Main article: Jon Folkman
Hoffman reports the following anecdote, which displays Erdős's single-minded devotion greet his friends and mathematics. Bargain the late 1960s, the grassy mathematician Jon Folkman was diagnosed as having advanced brain lump. During Folkman's hospitalization, he was visited repeatedly by Ronald Dancer and Paul Erdős. After surmount brain surgery, Folkman was disconsolate that he had lost coronate mathematical skills. As soon bring in Folkman received Graham and Erdős at the hospital, Erdős challenged Folkman with mathematical problems, help to rebuild his confidence.[1]
Hoffman tape that Folkman's recovery was give instructions. Notwithstanding his ability to settle the problems posed by Erdős, Folkman purchased a gun keep from killed himself. Folkman's supervisor whet RAND, Delbert Ray Fulkerson, damn himself for failing to take notice of suicidal behaviors in Folkman. Length of existence later Fulkerson also killed himself.[1]
Writing style
The book is mostly fated without much technical detail advocate can be read by entire without a mathematical background. Sculpturer does give some relatively ingenuous examples of mathematical problems everywhere the book (like Cantor's oblique argument) to illustrate some elaborate the ideas in modern math.