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Rating: Summary: Math Puzzles from another Universe! Review: I found the puzzles and problems in this book to be original and varied, and with a wide range of difficulty levels. I enjoyed the fact that some puzzles might actually have more than one answer, which leaves room for healthy debate and for better understanding the way different people think. I think this book can be enjoyed by readers of different levels of mathematical sophistication. For example, a freshman in high school could skip the more difficult problems, like the one on Ramanujan Congruences, although this is one of the most interesting chapters. My favorite chapter is one that poses a statistics-like question, dealing with bones thrown into a pit. You have to figure out the ratio of the long piece to the short piece. Here's a sample of other chapters that I really enjoyed:1. The Yellow-brick Road 2. An Experiment with Kansas 8. The Problem of the Bones 16. Omega Sphere 28. Legions' Number 29. The Problem of the Tombs 35. Prime-poor Equations 36. Number Satellite 43. Ramanujan Congruences and the Quest for Transcendence 49. The Jellyfish of Europa 99. A Connection Between Pi and e 103. The Scarecrow Formula 107. The Omega Crystal 108. Attack of the Undulating Undecamorphs I've already spent hours reading and rereading the book, and showing it to friends, and I know I'll spend many hours more!
Rating: Summary: Math Puzzles from another Universe! Review: I found the puzzles and problems in this book to be original and varied, and with a wide range of difficulty levels. I enjoyed the fact that some puzzles might actually have more than one answer, which leaves room for healthy debate and for better understanding the way different people think. I think this book can be enjoyed by readers of different levels of mathematical sophistication. For example, a freshman in high school could skip the more difficult problems, like the one on Ramanujan Congruences, although this is one of the most interesting chapters. My favorite chapter is one that poses a statistics-like question, dealing with bones thrown into a pit. You have to figure out the ratio of the long piece to the short piece. Here's a sample of other chapters that I really enjoyed: 1. The Yellow-brick Road 2. An Experiment with Kansas 8. The Problem of the Bones 16. Omega Sphere 28. Legions' Number 29. The Problem of the Tombs 35. Prime-poor Equations 36. Number Satellite 43. Ramanujan Congruences and the Quest for Transcendence 49. The Jellyfish of Europa 99. A Connection Between Pi and e 103. The Scarecrow Formula 107. The Omega Crystal 108. Attack of the Undulating Undecamorphs I've already spent hours reading and rereading the book, and showing it to friends, and I know I'll spend many hours more!
Rating: Summary: What is interesting and what solvable? Review: I prefer mathematical puzzles that have two features: - they are interesting (i.e. they have that difficulty that make them worth trying to solve); - they are solvable without developing a whole new theory and without writing program code. In this book most problems that are interesting (very interesting and intriguing, I must admit) are not solvable in the foresaid sense, and most solvable ones are not interestin. Of course, a few are both. The picture sequences to be completed are very original, and sometimes difficult, examples of QI tests. However, in spite of that slight flaw, I have really enjoyed reading it. It may depends on my appreciation of Oz novels and movie, and even if this book is not likely to mark the history of mathematical entertainment, it remains a worthy reading.
Rating: Summary: A true mathematical wonderland Review: This wonderful mathematical puzzle book has over 100 puzzles sure to delight readers -- from kids to adults. The problems include: mazes, sequences, probability, and more. Most puzzles are very clever and fun. I liked considering the yellow-brick road that crosses America. How many bricks would it take? I also liked the zebra numbers and circular primes. Legion's number is a number so big that it makes a a billion look puny. Anyone who has pondered the vastness of our mathematical universe will love this book.
Rating: Summary: A true mathematical wonderland Review: This wonderful mathematical puzzle book has over 100 puzzles sure to delight readers -- from kids to adults. The problems include: mazes, sequences, probability, and more. Most puzzles are very clever and fun. I liked considering the yellow-brick road that crosses America. How many bricks would it take? I also liked the zebra numbers and circular primes. Legion's number is a number so big that it makes a a billion look puny. Anyone who has pondered the vastness of our mathematical universe will love this book.
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