The Four Corners of Mathematics

Book excerpt: The Four Corners of Mathematics: A Brief History, from Pythagoras to Perelman describes the historical development of the ‘big ideas’ in mathematics in an accessible and intuitive manner. In delivering this bird's-eye view of the history of mathematics, the author uses engaging diagrams and images to communicate complex concepts while also exploring the details of the main results and methods of high-level mathematics. As such, this book involves some equations and terminology, but the only assumption on the readers’ knowledge is A-level or high school mathematics. Features Divided into four parts, covering Geometry, Algebra, Calculus and Topology Presents high-level mathematics in a visual and accessible way with numerous examples and over 250 illustrations Includes several novel and intuitive proofs of big theorems, so even the nonexpert reader can appreciate them Sketches of the lives of important contributors, with an emphasis on often overlooked female mathematicians and those who had to struggle.