The Divine Proportion

Rating:
Summary: A Cogent Reference of Beauty
Review: Anyone who rates this book on "fact" or "truth" will be very disappointed. Both are subjective. The objective of Huntley is to demonstrate a natural pattern in nature that exists regardless of theory, ego, and "truth." That is beauty and this book is well worth the read. There is a design.

Rating:
Summary: Mathematical error and misleading conclusion on page 99.
Review: For the most part an excellent, easy to follow work. However, on page 99 (item #3, bottom of page) the author states the incorrect equality: 2(phi+1+1/phi)=4, for the surface area of the golden cuboid. Correctly, the surface area of the given cuboid should be equal to approximately 6.472. This error could be overlooked except for the fact that the author extrapolates on this incorrect result (next page, item #4) and hints at a connection between pi and phi. The author uses his incorrect constant of proportionality, namely "4", which appears in the figuring of the surface area of the circumscribing sphere and the cuboid, as evidence of this "connection". Thus, in the guise of some illusive geometric "hint", leaving the reader with the idea that a tie between these two constants may exist in this geometric figure. The significance of this error cannot be overlooked.

Rating:
Summary: Mathematical error and misleading conclusion on page 99.
Review: For the most part an excellent, easy to follow work. However, on page 99 (item #3, bottom of page) the author states the incorrect equality: 2(phi+1+1/phi)=4, for the surface area of the golden cuboid. Correctly, the surface area of the given cuboid should be equal to approximately 6.472. This error could be overlooked except for the fact that the author extrapolates on this incorrect result (next page, item #4) and hints at a connection between pi and phi. The author uses his incorrect constant of proportionality, namely "4", which appears in the figuring of the surface area of the circumscribing sphere and the cuboid, as evidence of this "connection". Thus, in the guise of some illusive geometric "hint", leaving the reader with the idea that a tie between these two constants may exist in this geometric figure. The significance of this error cannot be overlooked.

Rating:
Summary: not very mathematical
Review: i can see that mr. huntley really thinks mathematics are beutiful (and i agree), but he fails to make a convincing argument of that fact. the math in the book is very basic, he just repeats what you'll find in any other golden ratio book and his aesthetics and psychology theories are far out and not properly argumented. i much preferred mario livio's book on the subject.

Rating:
Summary: Phi and the Divine Proportion
Review: Phi - the Greek alphbet that denotes the golden ratio. It is a fixed mathematical ratio that has been associated with aesthetically pleasing shapes, which is what Huntley's book, The Divine Proportion, attempts to describe. This ratio permeates various geometrical structures and has been linked to pleasing shapes (as identified through independent surveys).

Unfortunately, my mathematical faculties have been unexercised since I left university, and the book stretches my knowledge to its limits. If I were reading this ten years earlier, I might have found it easier. But nonetheless, this tome is for those who are comfortable with mathematical expressions, and not for an unprepared reader.

But still Huntley has made a commendable effort to bring together various disciplines - of music, psychology, geometry, algebra - and ties everything together with the Golden Ratio. His arguments are refreshing - its one of the first times I have heard anyone argue for the beauty of mathematics.

Now, if I only had the time to revise my algebra and work on those exercises!

Rating:
Summary: I agree with the gentleman from Atlanta...
Review: The review from Atlanta said he was tempted to staple entire pages together to eliminate the gushing in this book... I actually went through with a marker and crossed out what irritated me (about a third of the book).

Aside from that, this book does an excellent job at giving a beginner a handle on phi. Many of his examples either don't work out (as the other commentators have indicated) or more often, aren't spelled out well enough for the novice. Nonetheless, it's a book worth having. The relationships between E, Pi, and Phi, the three constants for the three dimensions of numbers, are well treated.

Mark Vedder

Rating:
Summary: Solid intro to the golden rectangle
Review: This book is perfect if you enjoyed the movie Pi and want to learn more, or if you are researching connections between math and religion, art, quality (per R. Pirsig), or aesthetics. One downer is that Huntley tries, and fails, to explain how math can be beautiful just like poetry can be beautiful. I personally think that you either dig math or you don't. Huntley should assume that anyone reading his/her book is at least interested and therefore skip the "math can be pretty too" lesson. Beyond that, though, the book is a thorough introduction to phi and the golden ratio. Huntley more than makes up for his mentioned faults by providing numerous equations, proofs, plots, and diagrams. The math level is pre-calculus with emphasis on geometry. I recommend reading this with plenty of scratch paper handy so that you can work along with the text and prove to yourself how deep this rabbit hole goes.