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Beyond Infinity
Beyond Infinity: An expedition to the outer limits of mathematics | Eugenia Cheng
5 posts | 2 read | 1 reading | 5 to read
Even small children know there are infinitely many whole numbers - start counting and you'll never reach the end. But there are also infinitely many decimal numbers between zero and one. Are these two types of infinity the same? Are they larger or smaller than each other? Can we even talk about 'larger' and 'smaller' when we talk about infinity? In Beyond Infinity, international maths sensation Eugenia Cheng reveals the inner workings of infinity. What happens when a new guest arrives at your infinite hotel - but you already have an infinite number of guests? How does infinity give Zeno's tortoise the edge in a paradoxical foot-race with Achilles? And can we really make an infinite number of cookies from a finite amount of cookie dough? Wielding an armoury of inventive, intuitive metaphor, Cheng draws beginners and enthusiasts alike into the heart of this mysterious, powerful concept to reveal fundamental truths about mathematics, all the way from the infinitely large down to the infinitely small.
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Dilara
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The photo would have been more relevant with How to Bake Pi, by the same author, but that‘s not the book I'm reading at the moment!

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swynn
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Pickpick

This is a popular introduction to mathematical infinity: how it makes sense to talk about numbers larger than any finite number; how "infinitely small" numbers gave us calculus; connections to analysis, geometry and category theory(!); and counterintuitive results, like objects with finite volume but infinite cross-section. Fun and very accessible-- I'd give this to an interested high school student.

#24b4monday @Andrew65 @jb72 @sumisbooks

swynn Oh, and this was my #BookSpin book for November. @TheAromaofBooks 4y
Andrew65 Great start 👏👏👏🙌 4y
Dilara Sounds interesting! I really enjoyed How to Bake Pi, by the same author. 4y
TheAromaofBooks Great review!! 4y
swynn @Dilara I liked that one too, and can also recommend "The Art of Logic in an Illogical World." I haven't yet read her new one, "X+Y," which I understand applies mathematical logic to gender issues, but hope to get to it soon. 4y
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swynn
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Infinity is a Loch Ness monster, capturing the imagination with its awe-inspiring size but elusive nature.

#FirstLineFridays
@ShyBookOwl

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SeeJulieRead
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Ending my Mother's Day with a book about math (yay!) and a snoozing dog.

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rachel_mbc
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One of my proudest moments as a mathematician-turned-bookseller was convincing Adam Johnson during a book signing that the real numbers are uncountably infinite. This book really brought back my love for the weirdness and beauty of mathematics. Infinity is mind-bending in just the right way.