- Hardcover: 144 pages
- Publisher: Fourth Estate; First Edition edition (4 Nov 1999)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 1841152498
- ISBN-13: 978-1841152493
- Product Dimensions: 17.8 x 13.2 x 2 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 407,907 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Description
John Walsh, Independent
‘A masterpiece of ludicrous arcana by two Cambridge researchers. It's the best digest of useless knowledge since the World Encyclopedia of Fly Fishing.’
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Product Description
Paul Smith stylishness collides with Einsteinian precision when, bored with waiting for the next sartorial breakthrough in male fashion, two physicists prove that there are not just four ways to tie a tie, but a further 81. Tie Knots unravels the history of ties, the story of the discovery of the new knots and some very elegant mathematics in action.
If Einstein had been left alone in Tie Rack for long enough perhaps he would have worked it out : why do people tie their ties in only 4 ways? And how many other possibilites are there? Two Cambridge University physicists, research fellows working from the Cavendish laboratories, have discovered via a recherche branch of mathematics – knot theory – that although only four knots are traditionally used in tying neck ties another 81 exist. This is the story of their discovery, of the history of neck ties and of the equations that express whether a tie is handsome or not. Of the 81 new knots, 6 are practical and elegant. We now have somewhere else to go after the Pratt, the Four-in-Hand, the Full and Half Windsor. Sartorial stylishness is wrapped effortlessly around popular mathematics. A concept developed to describe the movement of gas molecules – the notion of persistent walks around a triangular lattice – also describes the options for tie tying. Pure maths becomes pure fashion in a delightfully designed little package from Fourth Estate.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This book is really different - probably because it's written by two professors who apply mathematics to the principles of tying a tie, but it makes for a refreshing read. An invaluable resource for the modern day gentleman, this book tells you which knot suits a cutaway collar, etc etc, but it also provides a fascinating insight into the history of the neck tie (and its predecessors.) An excellent Christmas gift for Dad, I give this book 5 stars for entertainment, and value for money.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Leave it to mathematics to discover new ways to express an art form. As a passionate collector of fine neckwear ( I own several hundred ties ), I was very interested to see what these boys came up with. In addition to the four styles I knew previously, I can now boast four more practical methods of tying my beloved cravates. This is a very good book for anyone who feel as Oscar Wilde did: "One should either wear a work of art or be a work of art". I highly recommend it!
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This book is absolutely bonkers but also very funny. I don't know if the authors intended it to be this way but it's a hoot. Perfect stocking filler!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
superb and thrilling history and theory
The book begins with a history of ties from the reign of Charles II to the present. The next chapter shows a few practical knots and explains knot theory and then applies it to... Read more
Published on 1 Mar 2001
A charming addition to the shelves of any well dressed man
A well tied tie is a curious but undoubtedly essential part of any man's attire. Nonetheless until now, and despite the kind demonstrations of several associates, I have not been... Read more
Published on 4 April 2000
more is less
A curiously decadent book. indulgent. Well, then again, I did read it all.
Published on 25 Mar 2000
Authoritative book on ties
The book begins with a a fascinating history of ties and mens dress from the reign of Charles II to the present, with exerpts from Randle Holme in 1688 to Esquire in the 1950s. Read more
Published on 14 Feb 2000
Good text, poor title
This is a rather fun book about the *history*, and then the science, of tie wearing, to which the title scarcely does justice. Read more
Published on 9 Feb 2000
Review from "The List" in the Guardian, 13 November 1999
As I recline weekly in velvet smoking jacket and exquisite cravat to dictate The List to my oiled, submissive stenographer, it is often given to me to muse on the science and... Read more
Published on 21 Jan 2000
Review from Physics World, January 2000
Publishers seem to have hit on a winning formula for non-fiction books in recent years. Take a seemingly estoric subject, mix in lots of history, add plenty of anecdotes, keep it... Read more
Published on 21 Jan 2000
Excellent study of the art of tying ties
I am sure a lot of people will look at this book and wonder how anyone could have filled the pages ! However, it is a fascinating study of the history of ties and how to tie them. Read more
Published on 30 Nov 1999
A book for the millenium......
An intelligent and entertaining book for the people who has little else to worry about! The authors take readers through some fascinating history of tie wearing before brutally... Read more
Published on 12 Nov 1999
How to get knotted by Cambridge boffins
This book is a sparkling new account of the history *and* future of tie knots. Having traced the origins of this obscure ornament, this pair of fashion-minded physicists also... Read more
Published on 23 Sep 1999
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