"...includes landmark discoveries spanning 2500 years and representing the work of mathematicians such as Euclid, Georg Cantor, Kurt Godel, Augustin Cauchy, Bernard Riemann and Alan Turing. Each chapter begins with a biography of the featured mathematician, clearly explaining the significance of the result, followed by the full proof of the work, reproduced from the original publication, many in new translations."
What's great about this book for a teenager is that they get to read original sources for the stuff they've already learned! And indeed, as they learn more they can keep coming back for more original sources. Personally, reading Descartes original words in Geometry was awe-inspiring, not because every word was so perfect, but because he comes across as just so damn human, the ideas he presents are subtle and profound, and yet presented with an interesting combination of humility and pride that is instantly recognizable. I truly wish I'd had something like that book before embarking on my own journey through math - we stand on the shoulders of giants, but we so rarely look down to see their faces.
From the blurb:
"...includes landmark discoveries spanning 2500 years and representing the work of mathematicians such as Euclid, Georg Cantor, Kurt Godel, Augustin Cauchy, Bernard Riemann and Alan Turing. Each chapter begins with a biography of the featured mathematician, clearly explaining the significance of the result, followed by the full proof of the work, reproduced from the original publication, many in new translations."
What's great about this book for a teenager is that they get to read original sources for the stuff they've already learned! And indeed, as they learn more they can keep coming back for more original sources. Personally, reading Descartes original words in Geometry was awe-inspiring, not because every word was so perfect, but because he comes across as just so damn human, the ideas he presents are subtle and profound, and yet presented with an interesting combination of humility and pride that is instantly recognizable. I truly wish I'd had something like that book before embarking on my own journey through math - we stand on the shoulders of giants, but we so rarely look down to see their faces.