Trigonometric delights / Eli Maor.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Maor, Eli, author.

Maor, Eli, Author.

Series:

Princeton Science Library ; 68

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Trigonometry.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (xiv, 236 pages) : illustrations

Place of Publication:

Princeton, New Jersey ; Oxford : Princeton University Press, [2020]

Summary:

A fun, entertaining exploration of the ideas and people behind the growth of trigonometryTrigonometry has a reputation as a dry, difficult branch of mathematics, a glorified form of geometry complicated by tedious computation. In Trigonometric Delights, Eli Maor dispels this view. Rejecting the usual descriptions of sine, cosine, and their trigonometric relatives, he brings the subject to life in a compelling blend of history, biography, and mathematics. From the proto-trigonometry of the Egyptian pyramid builders and the first true trigonometry developed by Greek astronomers, to the epicycles and hypocycles of the toy Spirograph, Maor presents both a survey of the main elements of trigonometry and a unique account of its vital contribution to science and social growth. A tapestry of stories, curiosities, insights, and illustrations, Trigonometric Delights irrevocably changes how we see this essential mathematical discipline.

Contents:

Frontmatter

Contents

Preface

PROLOGUE. Ahmes the Scribe, 1650 B.C.

Recreational Mathematics in Ancient Egypt

1. Angles

2. Chords

Plimpton 322: The Earliest Trigonometric Table?

3. Six Functions Come of Age

Johann Müller, alias Reginunutanus

4. Trigonometry Becomes Analytic

Franςois Viete

5. Measuring Heaven and Earth

Abraham De Moivre

6. Two Theorems from Geometry

7. Epicycloids and Hypocycloids

Maria Agnesi and Her "Witch"

8. Variations on a Theme by Gauss

9. Had Zeno Only Known This!

10. (sinx)/x

11. A Remarkable Formula

Jules Lissajous and His Figures

12. tanx

13. A Mapmaker's Paradise

14. sin x = 2: Imaginary Trigonometry

Edmund Landau: The Master Rigorist

15. Fourier's Theorem

Appendixes

Bibliography

Credits for Illustrations

Index

Notes:

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

9780691202204

0691202206