Millions of people visit xkcd.com each week to read Randall Munroe's iconic webcomic. His stick-figure drawings about science, technology, language, and love have a large and passionate following. Fans of xkcd ask Munroe a lot of strange questions. What if you tried to hit a baseball pitched at 90 percent the speed of light? How fast can you hit a speed bump while driving and live? If there was a robot apocalypse, how long would humanity last? In...

Counting, measuring, and calculating are as old as civilization itself, as are many of the theorems and laws of math. This book tells the fascinating stories behind mathematical discoveries. The 12-page foldout timeline sets the saga of mathematics against the backdrop of world history.

"The mathematical concept of place value is explained using a place value chart, descriptions of how money is notated, and humorous examples from a recipe that a group of monkeys is using to make a gigantic banana muffin"--

"Take a look into the fascinating world of mathematics, why it is an intriguing STEM career, and the amazing work scientists in this field have accomplished throughout the years"--Publisher's website. Humans are born with basic math abilities, but complex math involves study and abstract thinking. Zuchora-Walske shows readers how mathematics-- and math education-- have changed over the years... and are still changing.

The author focuses on how mathematics is created rather than on mathematical facts and teaches the subject without requiring memorization or any mathematical knowledge beyond basic computation.

"For fans of Seven Brief Lessons in Physics, an exploration of the many ways mathematics can transform our understanding of literature and vice versa, by the first woman to hold England's oldest mathematical chair. We often think of mathematics and literature as polar opposites, as different as they come. But what if, instead, they were inextricably, even fundamentally, linked? In her clear, insightful, laugh-out-loud funny debut, Once Upon a Prime,...

The bestselling author of "Zero" shows how mathematical misinformation pervades--and shapes--our daily lives

Describes the discovery of the lost works of Archimedes, the great Greek mathematician, as part of a palimpsest from a medieval prayer book created during the thirteenth century, and offers a look at the full range of mathematical discoveries and theories that were found.

"The Magic of Math is the math book you wish you had in school. Using a delightful assortment of examples--from ice cream scoops and poker hands to measuring mountains and making magic squares--this book empowers you to see the beauty, simplicity, and truly magical properties behind those formulas and equations that once left your head spinning. You'll learn the key ideas of classic areas of mathematics like arithmetic, algebra, geometry, trigonometry,...