About this title: Today complex numbers have such widespread practical use - from electrical engineering to aeronautics - that few people would expect the story behind their derivation to be filled with adventure and enigma. In "An Imaginary Tale", Paul Nahin tells the 2000-year-old history of one of mathematics' most elusive numbers, the square root of minus one, ...
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Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is described below.
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Date Published: 1998
ISBN-13:9780691027951ISBN:0691027951
Description: Good in good dust jacket. Hardcover Edition-Average Wear-Few Markings. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. 288 p. Contains: Illustrations. Audience: General/trade. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Date Published: 1998-08-24
ISBN-13:9780691027951ISBN:0691027951
Description: New. At the very beginning of his book on i, the square root of minus one, Paul Nahin warns his readers: An Imaginary Tale has a very strong historical component to it, but that does not mean it is a mathematical lightweight. But don't read too much into th. read more
Edition: Illustrated.
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Date Published: 1998
ISBN-13:9780691027951ISBN:0691027951
Description: Very good in very good dust jacket. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. 288 p. Contains: Illustrations. Audience: General/trade. Will ship 1-2 business days. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Princeton University Press, Princeton
Date Published: 1998
ISBN-13:9780691027951ISBN:0691027951
Description: Near Fine in Near Fine jacket. A history of the concept, development, philosophy and theories of negative and imaginary numbers. NEAR FINE jacket and book. Light edgewear to the jacket, most noticeable to the corners and the rear corner near the hinge. Light fading to the extremities of the book. Text clean and tight with a crease in page 103. Nice copy. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Princeton University
Date Published: 1998
ISBN-13:9780691027951ISBN:0691027951
Description: Fine in Fine jacket. Hardback book and dust jacket in fine condition-clean and no marks, 257 pages, historical fiction based on mathematics. read more
Edition: Illustrated.
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Date Published: 1998
ISBN-13:9780691027951ISBN:0691027951
Description: Fine in fine dust jacket. The previous owner's sticker is on the cover page. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. 274 p. Contains: Illustrations. Audience: General/trade. read more
Edition: First Edition
Binding: Hardcover; First Printing
ISBN-13:9780691027951ISBN:0691027951
Description: Fine in Fine dust jacket. Hardcover. Princeton University Press, 1998. 1st Edition/1st Printing. Fine Book in Fine Dust Jacket. Price Intact. Previous owner's inscription and stamp. Overall, a clean and tight copy to add to a collection or read and enjoy. Dust Jacket protected with a new archival cover. Bubble wrapped and shipped promptly in a box. read more
Edition: First Edition, Second Printing
Binding: Cloth Boards, Gilt Titles
Publisher: Princeton Univ Dept of Art &, Ewing, New Jersey, U.S.A.
Date Published: 1998
ISBN-13:9780691027951ISBN:0691027951
Description: Fine in About Fine jacket. Mathematics. 8vo-over 7¾"-9¾" tall. The 2000 year-old history of one of mathematics' most elusive numbers-the square root of minus-one. 257pp, mathematical figures. Bright, clean copy, about 'as new'. Weight, 560g. read more
Edition: Illustrated.
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Date Published: 1998
ISBN-13:9780691027951ISBN:0691027951
Description: Fine. No dust jacket as issued. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. 288 p. Contains: Illustrations. Audience: General/trade. math book specialists read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1998, number line: 6 7 8 9 10
ISBN-13:9780691027951ISBN:0691027951
Description: ISBN 0-691-02795-1 Octavo (9.5 in. by 6.25 in. ); 257pp.; fine hardcover; very good dust jacket; dust jacket lightly bumped, torn at extremities; crisp; clean; bright. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Date Published: 1998
ISBN-13:9780691027951ISBN:0691027951
Description: Good+ 9780691027951. Good sound copy, pages clean and bright. Brown boards in good condition. Dust jacket good but with an inch tear near spine base. First class daily dispatch from Devon.; the Square Root of Minus One; 1.1 x 9.3 x 6 Inches; 257 pages. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Date Published: 1998
ISBN-13:9780691027951ISBN:0691027951
Description: New in new dust jacket. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. 288 p. Contains: Illustrations. Audience: General/trade. BRAND NEW NEVER OPENED read more
Edition: Reprint
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Princeton University Press, USA
Date Published: 1998
ISBN-13:9780691027951ISBN:0691027951
Description: Near Fine in Very Good jacket. 8vo-over 7¾"-9¾" tall. HB, burgundy boards in pictorial DJ, NF/VG, 257pp, appendices, notes, indices, b/w diagrams, illustrations. Unclipped DJ has minor ubbing, creasing to edges. Book has light rubbing to covers, inside is square, clean, tight & unmarked. Another surpise mathematics bestseller. 610g when packed. read more
"one of the best mathematics books ever written. the last two chapters have significant mathematical formalism (mostly complex analysis), but up until that point almost any calculus student will understand the arguments presented. some of the most elegant and beautiful ideas are covered in this surprisingly short book. I love it and try to read it often."
"Yeah, yeah, I should know better than to expect much from a book on math, but I've actually read some decent ones. This one was supposed to be on layman's terms, but it was so technical that it might as well have been written in French. Nothing was explained in plain English--it was all equations and made me feel rather stupid. I'm going to be teaching math, after all, but man, it was way over my head. Not that I expect anyone to actually read it, but just in case you were tempted, don't."
"Great history and math book. You definitely need a lot of math to fully appreciate this book (if you don't have background up to trig, and preferably calculus, you'll find all but the first couple of chapters impenetrable). If you fit the pre-reqs though, it is very interesting. I found how much my math has degenerated as every now and then I just had to shrug and just move on. (I do look forward to going back and with pencil and paper trying out some of the more hairy calculations.) Now, after all that, I would say even if you don't have a strong math background, the history part is very interesting and some of the simple math concepts as they evolved are keen, so it would be worth your while to crack the book open and read the first couple chapters."
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