The Mathematics of Oz: Mental gymnastics from beyond the edge by Clifford Pickover, Cambridge University Press, £21.95, ISBN 0521016789 Reviewed by Elizabeth Sourbut
PUZZLES and mazes and shapes, oh my… Yes, this is another recreational mathematics book, but The Mathematics of Oz stands out from the crowd. Games can be a good introduction to more serious stuff, and Clifford Pickover has chosen a thoroughly eclectic selection. It ranges in difficulty from challenging to outrageously difficult. Numerical oddities, geometric puzzles and a few unsolvable conundrums all face Dorothy, heroine of the science fiction story that gives shape to the book. She…
