1st Edition

The Prince of Mathematics Carl Friedrich Gauss

By M. B. W. Tent Copyright 2006
    264 Pages
    by A K Peters/CRC Press

    Learn about the boy who - could read and add numbers when he was three years old, - thwarted his teacher by finding a quick and easy way to sum the numbers 1-100, - attracted the attention of a Duke with his genius, and became the man who... - predicted the reappearance of a lost planet, - discovered basic properties of magnetic forces, - invented a surveying tool used by professionals until the invention of lasers. Based on extensive research of original and secondary sources, this historical narrative will inspire young readers and even curious adults with its touching story of personal achievement.

    Child Prodigy (1777–1788)
    Counting
    Sums
    The Duke of Braunschweig
    The Schoolroom
    Arithmetic
    Early Mathematics

    The Duke’s Protégé (1788–1798)
    Royal Patronage
    Gymnasium: High School
    Independent Study of Mathematics
    The Regular 17-gon
    Mathematical Journal
    Number Theory

    Gifted Astronomer, Father of a Young Family (1798–1814)
    Carl Friedrich Gauss, PhD
    The Planetoid Ceres
    A Wife and a Child
    The Duke and St. Petersburg
    Professor of Astronomy
    Tragedy
    Marriage to Minna Waldeck
    The Trip to Munich
    The New Observatory
    Gauss’ Mother

    Surveyor of Hannover, Father of a Growing Family (1815–1832)
    Surveying
    Summers on the Road
    Trouble with Eugen

    Magnetic Professor, Prince of Mathematics (1833–1855)
    Non-Euclidean Geometry
    Magnetism
    The Göttingen Seven
    Looking Back

    Index

    Biography

    M. B. W. Tent

    ... a worthwhile book. It is nicely conceived, well researched, and thoughfully written and illustrated. We could use more books of this nature for young readers. I would recommend this book for middle school and secondary school library acquisition.
    —Frank J. Swetz, Mathematics Teacher, February 2007

    For teachers who value the impact that historical studies in mathematics can have on their students, who incorporate literature into their teaching, or who want to open up a world of mathematics often inaccessible to middle school students, this is an excellent source.
    —M. Jayne Fleener, Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School, February 2007

    This book is a novel about Gauss written so as to be comprehensible to young readers... a historical narrative resulting from extensive research of original and secondary sources.
    —Peter Fillmore, CMS Notes, February 2007

    exceptionally engaging treatment of Gauss' life and accomplishments spiced up here and there with just the right amount of mathematics; particularly suitable for young readers.
    —Philip J. Davis, November 2005

    In this book, young readers are transported back two centuries to the candlelit world of Carl Friedrich Gauss. M.B.W. Tent's charming tale follows Gauss from his working-class boyhood to the heights of European mathematics-a Horatio Algebra story if ever there was one.
    —William Dunham, November 2005