About this item
Think of a number between one and 10. No, hang on, let's make this interesting. Between zero and infinity. Even if you stick to the whole numbers, there are a lot to choose from - an infinite number in fact. Throw in decimal fractions, and infinity suddenly gets an awful lot bigger (is that even possible?) . And then there are the negative numbers, the imaginary numbers, the irrational numbers like pi which never end. It literally never ends. The world of numbers is indeed strange and beautiful. Among its inhabitants are some really notable characters - pi, e, the 'imaginary' number i and the famous golden ratio to name just a few. Prime numbers occupy a special status. Zero is very odd indeed: is it a number, or isn't it? How Numbers Work takes a tour of this mind-blowing but beautiful realm of numbers and the mathematical rules that connect them.
About the Author
New Scientist, the world's leading science & technology weekly magazine, was launched in 1956 "for all those men and women who are interested in scientific discovery, and in its industrial, commercial and social consequences".The brand's mission is no different today - New Scientist reports, explores and interprets the results of human endeavour and issues that affect us all, explaining why a development is significant as well as putting social and cultural context around it.