'The main object of this book is to dispel the fear of mathematics. Many people regard mathematicians as a race apart, possessed of almost supernatural powers. While this is very flattering for successful mathematicians, it is very bad for those who, for one reason or another, are attempting to learn the subject.'
W.W. Sawyer's deep understanding of how we learn and his lively, practical approach have made this an ideal introduction to mathematics for generations of readers. By starting at the level of simple arithmetic and algebra and then proceeding step by step through graphs, logarithms and trigonometry to calculus and the dizzying world of imaginary numbers, the book takes the mystery out of maths. Throughout, Sawyer reveals how theory is subordinate to the real-life applications of mathematics - the Pyramids were built on Euclidean principles three thousand years before Euclid formulated them - and celebrates the sheer intellectual stimulus of mathematics at its best.

Mathematician's Delight

Science & Math

Sawyer, W.W.

Mathematics

Penguin??Books

"Recommended with confidence" by The Times Literary Supplement, this lively survey starts with simple arithmetic and algebra and proceeds by gradual steps through graphs, logarithms, and trigonometry to calculus and the world of numbers. Generations of readers have found it the ideal introduction to mathematics, offering accessible explanations of how theory arises from real-life applications."The main object of this book is to dispel the fear of mathematics," declares author W. W. Sawyer, adding that "Many people regard mathematicians as a race apart, possessed of almost supernatural powers. While this is very flattering for successful mathematicians, it is very bad for those who, for one reason or another, are attempting to learn the subject." Now retired, Sawyer won international renown for his innovative teaching methods, which he used at colleges in England and Scotland as well as Africa, New Zealand, and North America. His insights into the pleasures and practicalities of mathematics will appeal to readers of all backgrounds.

The search for pattern (His Introducing mathematics, 3) (v. 3)

Penguin Books, Ltd.

"No mathematician can be a complete mathematician unless he is also something of a poet." — K. Weierstrass In this lively and stimulating account, noted mathematician and educator W. W. Sawyer (Professor Emeritus, University of Toronto) defines mathematics as "the classification and study of all possible patterns." It is a broad definition, but one that seems appropriate to the great scope and depth of the topic. Indeed, mathematics seems to have few boundaries, either in applications to practical matters or in its mind-stretching excursions into realms of pure abstraction. Gearing his approach to the layman whose grasp of things mathematical may be a bit precarious, Professor Sawyer offers a lucid, accessible introduction to the mathematician's cast of mind. Five well-written preliminary chapters explore the beauty, power and mysticism of mathematics; the role of math as an adjunct in utilitarian matters; and the concepts of pattern, generalization and unification as both tools and goals of mathematical thought. After developing this conceptual groundwork, the author goes on to treat of more advanced topics: non-Euclidean geometry, matrices, projective geometry, determinants, transformations and group theory. The emphasis here is not on mathematics with great practical utility, but on those branches which are exciting in themselves — mathematics which offers the strange, the novel, the apparently impossible — for example, an arithmetic in which no number is larger than four. Mathematicians will appreciate the author's grasp of a wide range of important mathematical topics, and his ability to illuminate the complex issues involved; laymen, especially those with a minimal math background, will appreciate the accessibility of much of the book, which affords not only a portrait of mathematics as a matchless tool for probing the nature of the universe, but a revealing glimpse of that mysterious entity called "the mathematical mind." Professor Sawyer has further enhanced this new Dover edition with updated material on group theory, appearing here in English for the first time.

Prelude to Mathematics (Dover Books on Mathematics)

Dover Publications

Here is a presentation of elementary mathematics that anyone can appreciate, especially those with imagination. As the title suggests, the author's technique relies on visual elements, and his approach employs the most graphic and least "forbidding" aspects of mathematics. Most people, he observes, possess a direct vision that permits them to "see" only the smaller numbers; with the larger numbers, however, vision fails and mental chaos ensues. Sawyer addresses this difficulty, speaking both for those who like recreational mathematics and for those who teach, suggesting a variety of methods used by many effective teachers — techniques of visualizing, dramatizing, and analyzing numbers that attract and retain the attention and understanding of students. His topics, ranging from basic multiplication and division to algebra, encompass word problems, graphs, negative numbers, fractions, and many other practical applications of elementary mathematics. A valuable resource for parents and teachers, this book will captivate any reader seeking an improved understanding of mathematics.

Vision in Elementary Mathematics (Dover Books on Mathematics)

"Recommended with confidence" by The Times Literary Supplement, this lively survey starts with simple arithmetic and algebra and proceeds by gradual steps through graphs, logarithms, and trigonometry to calculus and the world of numbers. Generations of readers have found it the ideal introduction to mathematics, offering accessible explanations of how theory arises from real-life applications. "The main object of this book is to dispel the fear of mathematics," declares author W. W. Sawyer, adding that "Many people regard mathematicians as a race apart, possessed of almost supernatural powers. While this is very flattering for successful mathematicians, it is very bad for those who, for one reason or another, are attempting to learn the subject." Now retired, Sawyer won international renown for his innovative teaching methods, which he used at colleges in England and Scotland as well as Africa, New Zealand, and North America. His insights into the pleasures and practicalities of mathematics will appeal to readers of all backgrounds.

Mathematician's Delight (Dover Books on Mathematics)

A Concrete Approach To Abstract Algebra (Dover Books On Advanced Mathematics)

Concrete Approach to Abstract Algebra

Dover Pubns

Brief, clear, and well written, this introduction to abstract algebra bridges the gap between the solid ground of traditional algebra and the abstract territory of modern algebra. The only prerequisite is high school–level algebra. Author W. W. Sawyer begins with a very basic viewpoint of abstract algebra, using simple arithmetic and elementary algebra. He then proceeds to arithmetic and polynomials, slowly progressing to more complex matters: finite arithmetic, an analogy between integers and polynomials, an application of the analogy, extending fields, and linear dependence and vector spaces. Additional topics include algebraic calculations with vectors, vectors over a field, and fields regarded as vector spaces. The final chapter proves that angles cannot be trisected by Euclidean means, using a proof that shows how modern algebraic concepts can be used to solve an ancient problem. Exercises appear throughout the book, with complete solutions at the end.

A Concrete Approach to Abstract Algebra (Dover Books on Mathematics)

Professor Sawyer's book is based on a course given to the majority of engineering students in their first year at Toronto University. Its aim is to present the important ideas in linear algebra to students of average ability whose principal interests lie outside the field of mathematics; as such it will be of interest to students in other disciplines as well as engineering. The emphasis throughout is on imparting an understanding of the significance of the mathematical techniques and great care has therefore been taken to being out the underlying ideas embodied in the formal calculations. In those places where a rigorous treatment would be very long and wearisome, an explanation rather than a complete proof is provided, the reader being warned that in a more formal treatment such results would need to be be proved. The book is full of physical analogies (many from fields outside the realm of engineering) and contains many worked and unworked examples, integrated with the text.

An Engineering Approach to Linear Algebra

Cambridge University Press

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Sawyer, W.W.. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Sawyer, W.W.

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Sawyer, W.W.. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Mathematician's Delight

Mathematician's Delight

The search for pattern (His Introducing mathematics, 3) (v. 3)

Prelude to Mathematics (Dover Books on Mathematics)

Vision in Elementary Mathematics (Dover Books on Mathematics)

Mathematician's Delight (Dover Books on Mathematics)

Concrete Approach to Abstract Algebra

A Concrete Approach to Abstract Algebra (Dover Books on Mathematics)

An Engineering Approach to Linear Algebra

An Engineering Approach to Linear Algebra