The mathematician's mind : the psychology of invention in the mathematical field / Jacques Hadamard ; [with a new preface by P.N. Johnson-Laird].

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Hadamard, Jacques, 1865-1963.

Series:

Princeton science library

Standardized Title:

Essay on the psychology of invention in the mathematical field

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Mathematics--Philosophy.

Mathematics.

Mathematicians--Psychology.

Mathematicians.

Physical Description:

xix, 143 pages ; 21 cm.

Other Title:

Psychology of invention in the mathematical field

Place of Publication:

Princeton, N.J. : Princeton University Press, [1996]

Summary:

Fifty years ago when Jacques Hadamard set out to explore how mathematicians invent new ideas, he considered the creative experiences of some of the greatest thinkers of his generation, such as George Polya, Claude Levi-Strauss, and Albert Einstein. It appeared that inspiration could strike anytime, particularly after an individual had worked hard on a problem for days and then turned attention to another activity. In exploring this phenomenon, Hadamard produced one of the most famous and cogent cases for the existence of unconscious mental processes in mathematical invention and other forms of creativity.

Notes:

Originally published: An essay on the psychology of invention in the mathematical field. Princeton : Princeton University Press, 1945.

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN:

0691029318

OCLC:

35209279

Online:

Publisher description