4 ms·

Can anyone recommend other interesting biographies of mathematicians? I personally enjoyed this biography of Alfred Tarski (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_

• wtrk 14y ago
  I have read and enjoyed some of the other books already mentioned and would add: * Paul R. Halmos's "I Want to Be a Mathematician... an automathography: http://www.amazon.com/Want-Be-Mathematician-Automathography-Spectrum/dp/0883854457/ http://www.amazon.com/Want-Be-Mathematician-Automathography-... * Frederick Mosteller's "The Pleasures of Statistics: The Autobiography of Frederick Mosteller": http://www.amazon.com/Pleasures-Statistics-Autobiography-Frederick-Mosteller/dp/0387779558/ http://www.amazon.com/Pleasures-Statistics-Autobiography-Fre...
• tgb 14y ago
  "The Man Who Knew Infinity" by Robert Kanigel on Ramanujan is good. "Georg Cantor" by Joseph Dauben is dense but interesting; it is closer to a mathematical treatment of Cantor's works than a biographical one. Some experience with the basics of analysis would be beneficial, but a surprising amount is developed throughout the book.
• m0nastic 14y ago
  Men of Mathematics is both a biography, and an interesting primer on math that I enjoyed tremendously: http://www.amazon.com/Mathematics-Touchstone-Books-E-T-Bell/dp/0671628186/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1351713613&sr=8-1&keywords=men+of+mathematics http://www.amazon.com/Mathematics-Touchstone-Books-E-T-Bell/...
  • evoxed 14y ago
    It should be noted that it is not considered the most factual account of any of the mathematicians it profiles, but rather a dramatic retelling of anecdotes and "hollywood gossip" [1]. That being said, it is certainly an entertaining read. [!] Truesdell, C. (1984). An idiot's fugitive essays on science: methods, criticism, training, circumstances. Berlin: Springer-Verlag. ISBN 0-387-90703-3. "Genius and the establishment at a polite standstill in the modern university: Bateman", pages 423 to 424
• tqs 14y ago
  I really enjoyed Logicomix, a self-aware graphic novel mostly revolving around Bertrand Russell (with appearances by Godel, Wittgenstein, etc.) http://www.amazon.com/Logicomix-An-Epic-Search-Truth/dp/1596914521 http://www.amazon.com/Logicomix-An-Epic-Search-Truth/dp/1596...
  • eru 14y ago
    And delightfully loose with the history. (But they admit to that in the epilogue.)
• kryptiskt 14y ago
  I liked Ulam's Adventures of a Mathematician. William Poundstone's Prisoner's Dilemma is only partly a biography of von Neumann, still a good book. Gian-Carlo Rota's Indiscrete Thoughts is a mash of bits and pieces, largely about mathematical culture and personalities. I thought it was an interesting read. What I would really like would be a serious tome on Claude Shannon, he plays a bit part in many, many books, but nobody seem to have written specifically about him and his work.
  • cafard 14y ago
    Agreed on Ulam. Also, there are many capsule biographies in William Dunham's "Journey Through Genius".
• seanstickle 14y ago
  "The Man Who Loved Only Numbers": http://www.amazon.com/Man-Who-Loved-Only-Numbers/dp/0786884061 http://www.amazon.com/Man-Who-Loved-Only-Numbers/dp/07868840... A poignant examination of the mathematician Paul Erdős, and his notion of The Book, "an imaginary book in which God had written down the best and most elegant proofs for mathematical theorems."
  • pauldelany 14y ago
    Also the documentary "n is a number"
• Perceval 14y ago
  Incompleteness: The Proof and Paradox of Kurt Godel by Rebecca Goldstein
• eru 14y ago
  I remember reading an excellent biography of von Neumann. But it was in German, and I can't seem to recall the title.