MATHEMATICS FOR THE MILLION

by Lancelot Hogben ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 25, 1937

Here comes a book heralded from across the seas as leading best seller lists first in non-fiction, more recently in fiction and non-fiction fields. And yet it is a subject which ""panics"" more people than almost any other subject. Take those hurdles and then see what it is. One's first reaction on finishing it is:-why is mathematics still taught as an abstraction, without the social basis on which it rests. Presented as in Hogben's book, there is reason back of virtually every forward step. And there is drama and imagination as well. The language of numbers takes on meaning. Geometry becomes a concrete and usable force. Arithmetic and Algebra become games. Trigonometry fills in some of the gaps. Even Calculus begins to glimmer on the consciousness. But most important, one acquires a conception of the history of civilization in mathematics. No -- it wont make mathematicians out of the million. But it will make mathematics come out of the discard in table conversation. It's a book that enough people are talking about in advance to start the ball rolling. It's definitely a book that word of mouth advertising will sell-- and not conventional advertising. Watch it!

Pub Date: March 25, 1937

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Norton

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1937

Categories: NONFICTION