Knowing the distance between them, he could work out the size of the Earth, which he published in his Eratosthenes Batavus (‘The Dutch Eratosthenes’) in 1617. Stewart's explanation of the Second Law of Thermodynamics and its ramifications were extremely lucid, and his discussion right on target. Allegedly, Prime Minister William Gladstone asked whether anything of practical consequence would come from it.

The reviewer said Stewart focused on how equations have changed the world, as new equations gave "birth to new branches of science". You can change your choices at any time by visiting Cookie preferences, as described in the Cookie notice. This is not to say that the book is written at a very deep level, but it would take a relatively sophisticated reader to get the best out of the book. Solving the resulting equations tells us how the planets orbit the Sun, or how to design a trajectory for a space probe.But this does not limit the use of the equation a²+b² = c² because any triangle can be cut into two right-angled ones. Although eminently readable and often amusing, this book is best read in chunks of a couple of chapters at a time, allowing the ideas to sink in. Einstein followed up on this insight with his famous papers on special relativity (1905) and general relativity (1915).

To understand a lot of the equations in this book it would be helpful to know something about calculus or other higher level maths. The book has an admirable focus on the practical applications of science, but some of this is presented with such limited detail that in a couple of places it devolves into lists of applications rather than real explanations. It describes the relationship between the sides of a right triangle on a flat plane: square the lengths of the short sides, a and b, add those together, and you get the square of the length of the long side, c.One further point about this book: I have felt for some time that there is a real need for students (from middle school, high school, and college) not only to learn mathematics, but to learn how it is useful and relevant in their lives.

He chose these towns because they lay on the same line of longitude and were exactly one degree of arc apart. Auch Mathematiker*innen (so wie ich es eine bin) können beim Lesen des Buches noch etwas lernen - mir waren ca drei Viertel der Formeln bekannt, aber ihr historischer Kontext und ihre gesellschaftlichen Implikationen nicht unbedingt. One kind presents relations between various mathematical quantities: the task is to prove the equation is true. They still existed as a peculiar, but essential problem in math until William Hamilton described this definition. For example, the base 10 logarithm of 1 is log(1) = 0, since 1 = 10 0; log(10) = 1, since 10 = 10 1; and log(100) = 2, since 100 = 10 2.So understanding right-angled triangles is the key because “they prove that there is a useful relation between the shape of a triangle and the lengths of its sides. An entertaining and illuminating collection of curious facts and histories suitable for random dipping-in or reading straight through. Entertaining, surprising and vastly informative, Seventeen Equations that Changed the World is a highly original exploration — and explanation — of life on earth.