Twelve essays take a playful approach tothe subject, exploring how to play poker over the telephone without the possibility of cheating, how to distinguish plausible fallacies from unbelievable facts, and how to cope mathematically with contorted worms, drunken tennis players, and snakes that eat their own tails.
Former columnist for "Scientific American"'s "Mathematical Games" section, Ian Stewart is aprofessor at the University of Warwick and theauthor of "Another Fine Math You've Got Me Into... "and a score of other books of mathematical recreations, popular science, and science fiction. In this collection ofpun-studded fables, he once again exercises his immense talent for transforming complicatedconcepts of modern mathematicsinto stimulating, accessiblefun. Stewart introduces the different kinds of infinity, explains how to build your own virus, explores the brighter ideas of Pascal and Fermat, and even offers a dozen different puzzles for thetwelve days of Christmas."