Nonfiction

The Big Bang of Numbers: How to Build the Universe Using Only Math

The Big Bang of Numbers: How to Build the Universe Using Only Math

  • Downloads：4606
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2022-09-30 03:19:36
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Manil Suri
  • ISBN：1324007036
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary

Our universe has multiple origin stories， from religious creation myths to the Big Bang of scientists。 But if we leave those behind and start from nothing—no matter， no cosmos， not even empty space—could we create a universe using only math？ Irreverent， richly illustrated， and boundlessly creative， The Big Bang of Numbers invites us to try。

In this new mathematical origin story， mathematician and novelist Manil Suri creates a natural progression of ideas needed to design our world， starting with numbers and continuing through geometry， algebra， and beyond。 He reveals the secret lives of real and imaginary numbers， teaches them to play abstract games with real-world applications， discovers unexpected patterns that connect humble lifeforms to enormous galaxies， and explores mathematical underpinnings for randomness and beauty。 With evocative examples ranging from multidimensional crochet to the Mona Lisa’s asymmetrical smile， as well as ingenious storytelling that helps illuminate complex concepts like infinity and relativity， The Big Bang of Numbers charts a playful， inventive course to existence。 Mathematics， Suri shows， might best be understood not as something we invent to explain Nature， but as the source of all creation， whose directives Nature tries to obey as best she can。

Offering both striking new perspectives for math aficionados and an accessible introduction for anyone daunted by calculation， The Big Bang of Numbers proves that we can all fall in love with math。

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Reviews

Ryo ，

I received a copy of this book for free in a Goodreads giveaway。I'm usually not much of a nonfiction reader， but this book may have changed my mind about that going forward。 Granted， I recognize that I'm probably in the minority。 I was a math major in school， and though I never really went further than my undergraduate education in math， I still had some interest in it even after graduating。 So I found this book really interesting。 It tries to build up various concepts of math starting from basi I received a copy of this book for free in a Goodreads giveaway。I'm usually not much of a nonfiction reader， but this book may have changed my mind about that going forward。 Granted， I recognize that I'm probably in the minority。 I was a math major in school， and though I never really went further than my undergraduate education in math， I still had some interest in it even after graduating。 So I found this book really interesting。 It tries to build up various concepts of math starting from basically nothing， starting with the natural numbers， and then it goes onto a surprising number of concepts， including geometry， polynomials， fractals， and even the cardinality of the real numbers。 I read all of the footnotes and endnotes with interest， which is rare in a nonfiction book。 Despite its relatively short length， it covers so many topics in an interesting and engaging way， even things like using crocheting to explain some hyperbolic geometry。 I don't know how much I believe this concept of building up the universe and all of this math from absolutely nothing， since the author obviously knows advanced mathematics in its current state， but the way he takes the reader on an adventure starting with something as simple as the natural numbers was really effective。 I don't think I had thought about the cardinality of the rational and real numbers since that real analysis class I took in college， but here it was， presented in an entertaining and digestible way。 This probably won't interest anyone who wasn't already interested in math， but I was both entertained and educated by this book。 。。。more

UKDana ，

I don't read much non-fiction but when I do it tends to be science based。 Having taught Maths at secondary school level （11 to 16 years old） for 35 years I was tempted by the claim that The Big Bang Of Numbers is for "maths aficionados and an accessible introduction for enthusiastic novices"。Author Manil Suri wants readers to stop thinking of maths as simply the arithmetic processes we are taught in school and use in our day to day lives。 To view maths in a completely different way。We are all fa I don't read much non-fiction but when I do it tends to be science based。 Having taught Maths at secondary school level （11 to 16 years old） for 35 years I was tempted by the claim that The Big Bang Of Numbers is for "maths aficionados and an accessible introduction for enthusiastic novices"。Author Manil Suri wants readers to stop thinking of maths as simply the arithmetic processes we are taught in school and use in our day to day lives。 To view maths in a completely different way。We are all familiar with the creation theories given by religion or physics。 Manil Suri approaches creation from the perspective of numbers。 He starts by simply asking where numbers come from？ From a creation point of view this isn't as easy to answer as you would first think。 If nothing exists numbers don't develop as a means of counting objects （since objects don't exist）。 The creation of numbers initially is very abstract， however the author then leads the reader through a natural evolution of the number system。 From natural （counting numbers） we develop integers （positive and negative numbers）， on to rational numbers （fractions and decimals） and then irrational numbers （such as pi）。 The concept of imaginary numbers is introduced in a very accessible way。Once numbers have been created we then move on to how geometry would develop。 Where possible practical examples are given to illustrate ideas， I particularly liked the use of crochet to explain the hyperbolic plane。From geometry we moved on to algebra。 Not the "find the value of x" type of algebra from school but the language used to construct laws and patterns。 These laws can then be used as building blocks to construct our universe。Overall this is an interesting addition to the genre of popular science。 More philosophical argument than mathematical text。 You do not need an advanced maths qualification to get something out of The Big Bang Of Numbers， however you do need to be comfortable using numbers。 If you enjoyed my review please check out my book blog， Reading For Leisurehttps://readingforleisure。blogspot。com/or follow me on Twitter@Debbie_Hart_UK 。。。more

Reference

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hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Big Bang of Numbers: How to Build the Universe Using Only Math&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Big Bang of Numbers: How to Build the Universe Using Only Math&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0