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The Mathematical Brain (Hardcover)

by Brian Butterworth (Author)
3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)

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Product details

  • Hardcover: 480 pages
  • Publisher: Macmillan (23 April 1999)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0333735277
  • ISBN-13: 978-0333735275
  • Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 624,993 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in this category:

    #23 in  Books > Health, Family & Lifestyle > Psychology & Psychiatry > Cognition & Cognitive Psychology > Learning

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  • See Complete Table of Contents

Product Description

Amazon.co.uk Review

At first glance, neuropsychologist Brian Butterworth's The Mathematical Brain might infuriate mathsphobes who insist that they just can't get a handle on numbers. Could it be true that natural selection produced brains preprogrammed with multiplication tables? Read a few pages, though, and you'll see that Professor Butterworth has more than a little sympathy for the arithmetically challenged, and indeed confesses that he too has a hard time with figures. His thesis isn't that we are born doing mathematics, but that we are born with a faculty for learning mathematics, much like our ability to learn language. He goes on to argue that unique individual differences in this faculty combine with our educational experiences to make us either lightning calculators or klutzes who can't work out the right tip.

Butterworth's style is perfect for his subject, seamlessly weaving scholarly analysis with down-to-earth humour and practical examples that will satisfy the researcher and the lay reader alike. Drawing on archaeology, anthropology, linguistics, and his own neuropsychology, he makes his case like a masterful attorney while remaining careful to leave room for scientific falsification. The history of counting is engrossing and will be new to many readers, as it has been a rather arcane field until recently--but it's just one of the many new vistas opened for the readers of What Counts. -- Rob Lightner, Amazon.com



Review

This is a thumping great book which attempts to explain how the human brain manipulates numbers. It comes with an endorsement from Jonathan Miller which might be a little off-putting to anyone not quite as clever as the good Dr Miller, and it is very much the kind of book written by an academic (Brian Butterworth is Professor of Cognitive Neuropsychology at University College London) for what he imagines to be a lay audience - perhaps someone with a PhD in a different field from his own. But since we can all count and manipulate numbers to some extent, there is something here to interest everybody, and the whole thing is certainly more accessible than A Brief History of Time. Recommended for puzzle solvers, and especially for anyone involved in teaching mathematics to young children (which includes all good parents). (Kirkus UK)
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Customer Reviews

2 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
3.0 out of 5 stars (2 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars A Fascinating Overview of the Beauty of Mathematics, 12 Jul 2001
By A Customer
Some of the arguments put forward in this book I found myself unable to agree with. However, I couldn't help feeling that this was perhaps partly intended by the author, in order to stir up interest in the subject.

Unfortunately, some of the first few chapters deal too long with the same subject matter, citing similar repetitive examples reinforcing the main argument of the chapter.

However, like this review, further reading rewards the reader with more information, prompting the reader to develop his own insights. I draw attention to chapter 7, "Good and Bad at Numbers". Whilst reading this chapter, I came to the conclusion that the Distributive Law, whilst useful in pure mathematics, is "never used" in real life: not so! It is in fact a necessary part of long-multiplication, which we are all taught in primary school. Towards the end of this chapter, Butterworth makes similar conclusions.

Reading this book renewed my interest in mathematics as an art, to be admired like a painting - something which studying Pure Mathematics at University failed to do.

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2 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars A Poor Attempt To Explain The World Of Maths, 21 April 2001
By A Customer
This review is from: The Mathematical Brain (Paperback)
The problem with this book starts from the beginning and a finish at it's departing. While most people might pick up this book expecting an intriguing journey into the mind, what we are actually given is a crass and almost "cheesy" exploitation of the human brain. Remarks attempting to be humorous give the book a patronising and at times infuriating voice. I found that this book could be admired and respected but not enjoyed or agreed with.

The points made are personal accusations and the evidence used to enforce Butterworth's points seem to be obvious and at most times poor. Although it can appear obvious why critics would lap up the book in a frenzy of interest with many questions in their minds, it becomes apparent that Butterworth answers little of these intriguing ideas and in some places manages to trail off from very interesting points. The result is a book with little structure and a lack of information that would appeal to the curious reader rather than the mathematician.

While it could be said that Butterworth's attempt to capture the mind is one of original and almost emotive exploration, it can also become a very tedious journey with great ease. If you're willing to spend the money on such an overpriced book, be weary that your reaction will most probably be one of misunderstanding, frustration and bewilderment. For the few people that, by the title, can identify that the book is in their interests, the buy isn't so bad, even if the author's writing style is flawed and tiring.

If you have any comments to make about my review, please feel free to e-mail me. Feedback would be welcome.

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