Andrew Hodges

One to Nine

If you're the sort of person who likes a bit of light mathematical reading then you should take a look at Andrew Hodges new book One to Nine: The Inner Life of Numbers, which explores a wide range of mathematical topics. There are nine chapters and the topics in each chapter are very loosely based on the number of that chapter.

Amongst the topics are Sudoku (including the killer variety), number theory and the nature of musical scales - why are there 12 notes in the octave rather than say 19. There's a look at various topics in physics - theories of everything, which Hodges suggests would be better named monolithic theories. There's also plenty about computers and what they can and can't do.

Hodges has clearly tried to make this book accessible to non-mathematicians. At the start there are few equations, but the style did seem to be a bit 'poetical' to me, which I found offputting. Later on the style settled down a bit, but more equations began to appear. I did feel that having introduced such a variety of new topics, Hodges should have given the readers more resources to follow up those which interest them. The are some notes on Hodges website www.cryptographic.co.uk, but I would hope that more will appear.

One thing that Hodges feels strongly about is that mathematics shouldn't be 'force fed', and this point of view is reflected in the book. If you agree with that viewpoint then you might like to give this book a try.

Amazon.com info

Hardcover 304 pages
ISBN: 039306641X
Salesrank: 109581
Weight:1 lbs

Published: 2008 W. W. Norton

Amazon price $13.11

Marketplace:New from $9.50:Used from $9.44

Buy from Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk info

Hardcover 328 pages
ISBN: 1904977758
Salesrank: 172675
Weight:0.88 lbs

Published: 2007 Short Books, London

Amazon price £9.09

Marketplace:New from £6.67:Used from £6.00

Buy from Amazon.co.uk

Product Description
*What Lynne Truss did for grammar in Eats, Shoots & Leaves, Andrew Hodges now does for mathematics.* Andrew Hodges, one of Britain's leading biographers and mathematical writers, brings numbers to three-dimensional life in this delightful and illuminating volume, filled with illustrations, which makes even the most challenging math problems accessible to the layperson. Inspired by millennia of human attempts to figure things out, this pithy book, which tackles mathematical conundrums from the ancient Greeks to superstring theory, finds a new twist to everything from musical harmony to code breaking, from the chemistry of sunflowers to the mystery of magic squares. Starting with the puzzle of defining unity, and ending with the recurring nines of infinite decimals, Hodges tells a story that takes in quantum physics, cosmology, climate change, and the origin of the computer. Hodges has written a classic work, at once playful but satisfyingly instructional, which will be ideal for the math aficionado and the Sudoku addict as well as for the life of the party. 40 illustrations.

Product Description

What Lynne Truss did for grammar in Eats, Shoots & Leaves, Andrew Hodges now does for mathematics.

Andrew Hodges, one of Britain's leading biographers and mathematical writers, brings numbers to three-dimensional life in this delightful and illuminating volume, filled with illustrations, which makes even the most challenging math problems accessible to the layperson. Inspired by millennia of human attempts to figure things out, this pithy book, which tackles mathematical conundrums from the ancient Greeks to superstring theory, finds a new twist to everything from musical harmony to code breaking, from the chemistry of sunflowers to the mystery of magic squares. Starting with the puzzle of defining unity, and ending with the recurring nines of infinite decimals, Hodges tells a story that takes in quantum physics, cosmology, climate change, and the origin of the computer. Hodges has written a classic work, at once playful but satisfyingly instructional, which will be ideal for the math aficionado and the Sudoku addict as well as for the life of the party. 40 illustrations.

target audience is unclear ***
As a math / non-fiction fan and a real fan of Hodges' "Alan Turing" bio, I was really looking forward to "One to Nine". The promise was not met. The material is all over the place and, at times, I had little idea what he was talking about. As a simple example, the relationships among the harmonics in music mean nothing to me. Should I know that background information? Sorry, I don't. Thus, who actually will buy the book? It's certainly not popularized enough for the general public and it's not heavy enough for a serious math guy. The niche is unclear and probably not large. "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" and "It Must Be Beautiful: Great Equations of Modern Science" are better. Some of the material is indeed quite enlightening and a pleasure to read. Hodges clearly enjoys the ideas and wants to spread the excitement. Through the first half, there were enough moments to keep me going. The second half clicked better, perhaps because it is actually less about numbers and more essay-like about general math and science. Hodges' venture into familiar territory with Turing machines and computers and such has little to do with the specific numbers for the containing chapters, which serve as a vague hook. That was fine with me, as some of that material was quite good. I wish Hodges had provided answers for some of the many posed problems. Most of them were out of my league and I may not have understood the answers, even if short enough to provide. For several others, I really would have liked to know.

target audience is unclear ***

As a math / non-fiction fan and a real fan of Hodges' "Alan Turing" bio, I was really looking forward to "One to Nine". The promise was not met. The material is all over the place and, at times, I had little idea what he was talking about. As a simple example, the relationships among the harmonics in music mean nothing to me. Should I know that background information? Sorry, I don't.

Thus, who actually will buy the book? It's certainly not popularized enough for the general public and it's not heavy enough for a serious math guy. The niche is unclear and probably not large. "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" and "It Must Be Beautiful: Great Equations of Modern Science" are better.

Some of the material is indeed quite enlightening and a pleasure to read. Hodges clearly enjoys the ideas and wants to spread the excitement. Through the first half, there were enough moments to keep me going. The second half clicked better, perhaps because it is actually less about numbers and more essay-like about general math and science. Hodges' venture into familiar territory with Turing machines and computers and such has little to do with the specific numbers for the containing chapters, which serve as a vague hook. That was fine with me, as some of that material was quite good.

I wish Hodges had provided answers for some of the many posed problems. Most of them were out of my league and I may not have understood the answers, even if short enough to provide. For several others, I really would have liked to know.

One to Nine and a lot more ****
I am enjoying the book a lot, but bewarned--you may not get a lot of the references he makes if you don't a some math background. I have undergraduate degrees in math and physics and I needed that to understand some of the details. Hodges discusses a lot more than just the numbers. For example he uses the number eight (one byte) as an excuse to discuss a lot about computers and computing with many (interesting) references to the ideas of Alan Turing (about whom he wrote a book). Many of the other chapters also wander into areas you might not have guessed were related to that number--but that's not a bad thing. I recommend the book to readers who haven't forgotten all their algebra.

One to Nine and a lot more ****

I am enjoying the book a lot, but bewarned--you may not get a lot of the references he makes if you don't a some math background. I have undergraduate degrees in math and physics and I needed that to understand some of the details. Hodges discusses a lot more than just the numbers. For example he uses the number eight (one byte) as an excuse to discuss a lot about computers and computing with many (interesting) references to the ideas of Alan Turing (about whom he wrote a book). Many of the other chapters also wander into areas you might not have guessed were related to that number--but that's not a bad thing. I recommend the book to readers who haven't forgotten all their algebra.

Great idea, but disappointing **
Granted I'm only about halfway through the book, but there's a reason for that. The idea, as presented by the NYT book review, is good: relate the math you learned in school, from memorized formulas to more difficult abstractions, to its much more interesting real-life applications, all while illustrating how those memorized relationships and hard-to-grasp concepts underpin so much of what you already take to be fact without attributing the reasons to mathematical relationships. But the prose is just not that enjoyable to me. Perhaps it will improve as I get more into the author's rhythm, but this isn't what I was looking for.

Great idea, but disappointing **

Granted I'm only about halfway through the book, but there's a reason for that. The idea, as presented by the NYT book review, is good: relate the math you learned in school, from memorized formulas to more difficult abstractions, to its much more interesting real-life applications, all while illustrating how those memorized relationships and hard-to-grasp concepts underpin so much of what you already take to be fact without attributing the reasons to mathematical relationships. But the prose is just not that enjoyable to me. Perhaps it will improve as I get more into the author's rhythm, but this isn't what I was looking for.

Interesting, Yes, But Way Over My Head **
I have always enjoyed math and use numbers constantly in making illustrations about everyday events. I won't tell you not to try this book as much of the material is fascinating! However, in spite of my mathematical background, I found that most of the material was too abstract for my feeble mind. I had trouble comprehending some of the concepts that were presented as being fairly simple. Hopefully, you are smarter than I am and will enjoy this book. If you struggle with numbers to begin with, I would suggest something more basic.

Interesting, Yes, But Way Over My Head **

I have always enjoyed math and use numbers constantly in making illustrations about everyday events. I won't tell you not to try this book as much of the material is fascinating! However, in spite of my mathematical background, I found that most of the material was too abstract for my feeble mind. I had trouble comprehending some of the concepts that were presented as being fairly simple. Hopefully, you are smarter than I am and will enjoy this book. If you struggle with numbers to begin with, I would suggest something more basic.