NATURE OF NUMBERS
By: Ian Stewarts
Introduction:
Ian Stewart is a mathematicians and prolific author, having written over 40 books on all
aspects of math, as well as publishing several guides to the math used in Terry Pratchett’s Disc
world books.
Stewart writes in a marvelously clear style but, more importantly, he is interesting: he sees
the world in an interesting way in a mathematical way and manages to convey the wonder and
strangeness and powerful insights, seeing the world in terms of patterns and shapes, number and
math, gives for. He wants us to see the world as how mathematician sees it, full of clues and
information which can bad us to deeper and deeper appreciation of the patterns and harmonies all
around us.
1. The Natural Order
Stewart begins the books by describing just some of natures multitude of patterns:
The regular movements of the stars in the night sky.
The sixfold symmetry of snowflakes.
The stripes of tigers and zebra’s.
The recuring patterns of a snail’s shell
Why nearly all flowers have petals arranged in me of the following numbers 5,
8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89
The regular pattern or rhythms made by animals scuttling, walking, flying and
swimming.
2. What mathematics is for Mathematics is brilliant at helping us to solve puzzle. It is a less
systematics way of digging out the rules and structures that lie behind some observed
pattern or regularity, and then using those rules and structures to explain what’s going on.
There are two main things that math is for. The first me is providing the tools which
let scientist understand what nature is doing, and the second me is providing new
theoretical questions for mathematician to explore for them. These are handy rules of thumb for
distinguishing between, respectively, applied and pure mathematics.
Many philosophers have indeed why. Is there a deep convince between human mind and
the structure of the mathematically and implant an understanding of math in us? Is the universe
made of math?
Stewarts answer is simple and elegant he thinks that nature explore every pattern that there
is, which is why me keep discovering patterns every where. We humans express these patterns in
number but natures doesn’t, but instead it uses the patterns and shape and possibilities. Which
the numbers express or define.
Romance – the relationship between periodically moving bodies in which their cycles lock
together so that they take up the same relative positions at regular intervals.
3. What Mathematics is about
Three word “number” does not immutable. Numbers are the most prominent part of
mathematics. Whole number 1, 2, 3…. Are known as natural numbers. If including a
negative whole number, the series is known as Integers. Positive and known as
rational number. Then there are real numbers and complex numbers. Five systems
in total. Math is also about operation such as addition, subtractions, multiplication
and division. Function also known as transformation rules for transforming
mathematical object into another.
4. The constants of change
Newton’s basic insight was that changes in nature can be described by mathematical
processes.
force = mass x acceleration
Newton invented calculus to help work out solutions to moving orders. It’s two basic
operation, which is the differentiation – the technique for finding rates of change and
integration is the technique undoing the expect of differentiation in order to isolate
out of the initial variables.
Calculating rates of change is a crucial aspect of math, engineering,
cosmology and many others areas of science.
5. From Violin to videos
The gives a fascinating historical recap of how initial investigation into the way
a violin string vibrates gave rise to formula and equations which turned out to be
useful in mapping electricity and magnetism, which turned out to the aspects if the
same fundamental force electromagnetism.
6. Broken Symmetry
A symmetry of an object are system is any transformation that leaves it
invariant.
There are many types of symmetry the important are reflects, us relatives,
and translations.
7. The Rhythm of life
The nature of escalation and hope bifurcation. If a simplified system wabbles,
then so must the complex system it is derived from bad into a discussion of how
animals. Especially animals with legs.
8. Do Dice Play God?
This chapter covers Stewart’s take on chaos then. Chaotic behavior obeys
deterministic laws, but is so irregular that to the untrained eye it looks pretty much
random. Chaos is not complicated pattern less behavior; it is rules more subtle.
9. Drops Dynamics and Diseases
Chaos there has all outs of implication but the one Stewart doses in is this;
the world is not chaotic; anything.
Raseda Sahi
BS CRIM 1-D
