The Calculus of Friendship: What a Teacher and a Student Learned about Life while Corresponding about Math | Date: 28 April 2011, 05:08
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The Calculus of Friendship: What a Teacher and a Student Learned about Life while Corresponding about Math
By Steven Strogatz
* Publisher: Princeton University Press
* Number Of Pages: 192
* Publication Date: 2009-08-23
* ISBN-10 / ASIN: 0691134936
* ISBN-13 / EAN: 9780691134932
Product Description:
The Calculus of Friendship is the story of an extraordinary connection between a teacher and a student, as chronicled through more than thirty years of letters between them. What makes their relationship unique is that it is based almost entirely on a shared love of calculus. For them, calculus is more than a branch of mathematics; it is a game they love playing together, a constant when all else is in flux. The teacher goes from the prime of his career to retirement, competes in whitewater kayaking at the international level, and loses a son. The student matures from high school math whiz to Ivy League professor, suffers the sudden death of a parent, and blunders into a marriage destined to fail. Yet through it all they take refuge in the haven of calculus--until a day comes when calculus is no longer enough.
Like calculus itself, The Calculus of Friendship is an exploration of change. It's about the transformation that takes place in a student's heart, as he and his teacher reverse roles, as they age, as they are buffeted by life itself. Written by a renowned teacher and communicator of mathematics, The Calculus of Friendship is warm, intimate, and deeply moving. The most inspiring ideas of calculus, differential equations, and chaos theory are explained through metaphors, images, and anecdotes in a way that all readers will find beautiful, and even poignant. Math enthusiasts, from high school students to professionals, will delight in the offbeat problems and lucid explanations in the letters.
For anyone whose life has been changed by a mentor, The Calculus of Friendship will be an unforgettable journey.
Summary: A very interesting book
Rating: 4
This is a very interesting book about the relationship between a high school student and teacher that extends long after the student has graduated. Because both student and teacher are math teachers, the correspondence between them frequently revolves aroung math problems that interest them, but it includes much more than that. Not being mathematically inclined whatsoever, I skipped over all the math, and found it a touching story. For those interested in the math too, it will be a double treat.
Summary: Calculus in Life
Rating: 5
Written by a Math Prof @ Cornell University, it is on Calculus, not in the dry formal math textbook way, but via a life story and many correspondences with his retired high-school math teacher, who helped the author overcome his fear of "epsilon-delta" in Calculus lesson at high-school.
Also in this book the author gave the working example of Feynman's "Differentiate under Integral" trick, not shown in the original book "Are you Joking, Mr. Feynman" where Feynman mentioned he self-paced the "secret weapon" from the "Advanced Calculus" (Woods).
I recommended this book to our local National Library to procure 10 copies for general public's reading. It is a shame if they don't, this book is an excellent reading for curious nonmathematicians.
Summary: I really enjoyed it
Rating: 5
Very touching book. I admit I did not understand all the math ... I enjoyed seeing it, though.:) Bittersweet in a "benjamin button" sort of way.
Summary: Beautiful book.
Rating: 5
This is an absolutely beautiful book about the relationship through letters of a high school math teacher and one of his students who becomes a world class mathematician. It's about their lives and the mathematics that bound them together. I have read quite a few memoirs and don't recall any that choked me up like this one did, I want to thank Dr. Strogatz for being so open. Also, the math in the book is very interesting and well explained, if I could give if more than five stars I would.
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