MATHEMATICAL FICTION:

a list compiled by Alex Kasman (College of Charleston)

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The Mathematician Repents (2004)
Estep Nagy
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A short story (?) in which Paul Erdős wakes up in the home of a Parisian mathematician, seems a bit confused, wanders around, and says some strange things. No real math is discussed in the story, but of course Erdős was a real mathematician.

I'm not absolutely sure this one is fiction. This could theoretically be a description of fact, though it reads more like a short story. (It seems odd to me for someone to have written a story about a real person who had not even been dead 10 years at the time it was written.) If anyone knows more than I do about its origins, please let me know.

Originally published in Southwest Review 89 no1 37-46 2004.

(Note: This is just one work of mathematical fiction from the list. To see the entire list or to see more works of mathematical fiction, return to the Homepage.)

Works Similar to The Mathematician Repents
According to my `secret formula', the following works of mathematical fiction are similar to this one:
  1. A Universe of Sufficient Size by Miriam Sved
  2. Cryptology by Leonard Michaels
  3. The Arnold Proof by Jessica Francis Kane
  4. Belonging to Karovsky by Kathryn Schwille
  5. Zilkowski's Theorem by Karl Iagnemma
  6. Long Division by Michael Redhill
  7. Falling Umbrella by Julia Whitty
  8. Kavita Through Glass by Emily Ishem Raboteau
  9. Of Mystery There Is No End by Leonard Michaels
  10. Life After Genius by M. Ann Jacoby
Ratings for The Mathematician Repents:
RatingsHave you seen/read this work of mathematical fiction? Then click here to enter your own votes on its mathematical content and literary quality or send me comments to post on this Webpage.
Mathematical Content:
1/5 (1 votes)
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Literary Quality:
4/5 (1 votes)
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Categories:
Genre
MotifReal Mathematicians,
Topic
MediumShort Stories,

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Exciting News: The 1,600th entry was recently added to this database of mathematical fiction! Also, for those of you interested in non-fictional math books let me (shamelessly) plug the recent release of the second edition of my soliton theory textbook.

(Maintained by Alex Kasman, College of Charleston)