Synopsis
A biography of a mathematical genius. Paul Erdos was the most prolific pure mathematician in history and, arguably, the strangest too.
In The Man Who Loved Only Numbers Paul Hoffman, former Editor-in-Chief of Discover magazine, describes the life of Paul Erdos, Hungarian mathematical genius. Born in 1913 in Budapest, Erdos was born the very day his two sisters died of scarlet fever. His mother, fearing childhood contagion, refused her son conventional schooling. Home alone, Erdos did mental arithmetic. At three he could multiply three digit numbers in his head. At four he began looking for patterns amongst the prime integers. It was the start of a life consumed by mathematics. For six decades Erdos had no job, no hobbies, no wife, no home; he never learnt to cook, do laundry, drive a car and died a virgin. Instead he travelled the world with his mother in tow, arriving at the doorstep of esteemed mathematicians declaring ‘My brain is open’. He travelled until his death at 83, racing across four continents to prove as many theorems as possible, fuelled by a diet of espresso and amphetamines. With more than 1,500 papers written or co-written, a daily routine of 19 hours of mathematics a day, seven days a week, Paul Erdos was one of the most extrordinary thinkers of our times.
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About the Author
Paul Hoffman is publisher of Encyclopaeida Brittanica and the science correspondent for The Newshour with John Lehrer on US TV.
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Man Who Loved Only Numbers :ERDOS
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Man Who Loved Only Numbers :ERDOS
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Man Who Loved Only Numbers :ERDOS
Published by
Fourth Estate Ltd, 1998
ISBN 10: 1857028112
ISBN 13: 9781857028119
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Man Who Loved Only Numbers :ERDOS
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The Man Who Loved Only Numbers
Published by
HarperCollins Publishers, United Kingdom, London, 1998
ISBN 10: 1857028112
ISBN 13: 9781857028119
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Paperback. Condition: Very Good. A biography of the Hungarian pure mathematical genius, Paul Erdos, born in 1913 in Budapest. Erdos led a strange life, devoting 19 hours a day, seven days a week to the study of mathematics, travelling the world with his mother until his death at the age of 83. He is considered one of the most extraordinary thinkers of our times. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged. Seller Inventory # GOR001182658
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The Man Who Loved Only Numbers
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The Man Who Loved Only Numbers
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The Man Who Loved Only Numbers
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