MATHEMATICAL FICTION:

a list compiled by Alex Kasman (College of Charleston)

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Surreal Numbers: How Two Ex-Students Turned on to Pure Mathematics and Found Total Happiness (1974)
Don Knuth
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The famous computer scientist (known to many grateful mathematicians as the creator of TeX) presents Conway's "surreal numbers" in the form of a fictionalized dialogue. Includes exercises!

Contributed by Jose Brox

It becomes repetitive; moreover, I think it actually isn't mathematical fiction! It is just a math text a little disguised.

Contributed by David L

Book Description: This book was intended to show an example of mathematical thinking. To accomplish this, Knuth chose to write about a subject that no one would have any previous experience with, namely Conway's surreal numbers.

More information about this work can be found at www.amazon.com.
(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 Surreal Numbers: How Two Ex-Students Turned on to Pure Mathematics and Found Total Happiness
According to my `secret formula', the following works of mathematical fiction are similar to this one:
  1. Let's Consider Two Spherical Chickens by Tommaso Bolognesi
  2. No Chance by Guy Hasson
  3. The Raven and the Writing Desk by Ian T. Durham
  4. Dialógusok a matematikáról [Dialogues on Mathematics] by Alfréd Rényi
  5. Letters to a Young Mathematician by Ian Stewart
  6. Math Girls by Hiroshi Yuki
  7. L.A. Math: Romance, Crime and Mathematics in the City of Angels by James D. Stein
  8. Zéro, ou les Cinq vies d'Aemer by Denis Guedj
  9. Gulliver's Posthumous Travels to Riemann's Land and Lobachevskia by William Pepperell Montague
  10. Report from the Ambassador to Cida-2 by Clifton Cunningham
Ratings for Surreal Numbers: How Two Ex-Students Turned on to Pure Mathematics and Found Total Happiness:
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:
5/5 (7 votes)
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Literary Quality:
2.14/5 (7 votes)
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Categories:
GenreDidactic,
Motif
TopicAlgebra/Arithmetic/Number Theory, Real Mathematics,
Medium

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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)