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Amazon.co.uk Review
Karl Sabbagh points out in Dr Riemann's Zeros prime numbers reveal their true magic in combination. Every even number can be obtained by adding together two prime numbers. And all non-primes can be obtained by multiplying two smaller prime numbers. This is a book about mathematics, not about the sorts of calculations and formulae we learned (and promptly forgot) at school. It is about a sphere of endeavour whose "glorious achievements...are less accessible than those of almost any other aspect of human culture." So while, at one level, Sabbagh's book is about how we look for prime numbers, his other, rather mordant accomplishment, is to show how wrong we non-mathematicians are, when we try to imagine what 'real' maths looks like.
Sabbagh's own mathematical gifts are just enough to give him glimpses of the subject's beauty. This beauty, he argues, is as real and vivid! as a phrase in music, or a curve in painting--but to perceive it requires a rare sort of imagination. A one-eyed man writing for a blind (non-mathematical) audience, Sabbagh's frustration enlivens his writing and adds tremendous poignancy to his difficult and worthwhile account. Part-biographical and part mathematical, Dr Riemann's Zeros describes a mathematical landscape whose navigation requires so many good ideas, it tests not just the ingenuity of the individual mathematician, but the soundness, communicativeness, and aggregated wisdom of a whole (largely invisible) culture. --Simon Ings --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Product Description
In 1859 Bernhard Riemann, a shy German mathematician, wrote an eight-page article, suggesting an answer to a problem that had long puzzled mathematicians. For the next 150 years, the world's mathematicians have longed to confirm the Riemann hypothesis. So great is the interest in its solution that in 2001, an American foundation offered a million-dollar prize to the first person to demonstrate that the hypothesis is correct. Karl Sabbagh's book paints vivid portraits of the mathematicians who spend their days and nights on the race to solve the problem.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
21 of 23 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I stopped reading this rather fast: it had errors in it, and while a lovely story for the non-mathematician, for anyone who knows and loves mathematics (and who else really does buy these books?) it's really rather frustrating that, after a few chapters, you're still not much clearer on what Reimann's Hypothesis really is.
Not worth the money: try The Music of the Primes (utterly brilliant) instead. This book simply cannot begin to compete.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I really enjoyed this book. It skips between explanations of some of the mathematical concepts associated with the subject and the stories and experiences of the mathematicians who are working, and have worked, on the topic. It is evident that a lot of research and interviewing of top mathematicians has gone into the book. It's an interesting insight into the world of mathematicians and does well to get the gist of the Hypothesis across, without going into the mathematical detail that would make it incomprehensible to most of us. Though some explanations were very good, I'm not sure whether all the mathematical discussion would be followed by someone not familiar with maths, but I guess they're unlikely to read the book anyway. I'm am currently doing a maths degree, and thought it was a great read!
13 of 17 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This book covers a fascinating subject matter, however ultimately I was disappointed in this book.
I thought the initial introduction to the “Riemann Hypothesis” was well constructed. The book then seems to almost randomly jump from one mathematician to the next as the author interviews them or describes past mathematicians. The writings are definitely humorous but they lack any depth in making a connection to the Hypothesis and there is too much irrelevant material presented about the peculiarities of the mathematics in question, which although sometimes funny is for the most part tiresome and boring. Lastly there is absolutely no historic information about Riemann himself which I thougth very shallow given that at least 50 other mathematicians are mentioned in the book. Also the scientific implications of the hypothesis (which would have made fascinating reading) are barely touched on. There are some much better books on the subject available....
I thought the initial introduction to the “Riemann Hypothesis” was well constructed. The book then seems to almost randomly jump from one mathematician to the next as the author interviews them or describes past mathematicians. The writings are definitely humorous but they lack any depth in making a connection to the Hypothesis and there is too much irrelevant material presented about the peculiarities of the mathematics in question, which although sometimes funny is for the most part tiresome and boring. Lastly there is absolutely no historic information about Riemann himself which I thougth very shallow given that at least 50 other mathematicians are mentioned in the book. Also the scientific implications of the hypothesis (which would have made fascinating reading) are barely touched on. There are some much better books on the subject available....
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