"How has mathematics evolved over the centuries and for what reasons? How have human endeavour and changes in the way we live been dependent on mathematics? How has our understanding of the universe been shaped by our knowledge of mathematics?

In this book, Richard Mankiewicz tells the story of this essential intellectual activity across cultures and civilizations and shows how, far from being just the obsession of an elite group of philosophers, priests and scientists, mathematics has - in some shape or other - entered every area of human activity.

The mysterious tally sticks of prehistoric peoples and the terrestrial maps used for trade, exploration and warfare; the perennial fascination with the motions of heavenly bodies and changing perspectives on the art and science of vision: all are testament to mathematics at the heart of history.".

"The path of this changing discipline is marked by a wealth of images, from richly illuminated medieval manuscripts to the deeply unsettling art of Dali or Duchamp, from the austere beauty of Babylonian clay tablets to the delicate complexity of computer-generated images.

These lavish reproductions are accompanied by a text that is remarkably accessible, and that encompasses a vast sweep of the past, from the dawn of Chinese and Indian civilizations through to the great translators of medieval Europe, and to the scientific and digital revolutions.

With lively portraits of household names such as Kepler and Copernicus as well as lesser-known figures like Niels Henrik Abel and Leonhard Euler, The Story of Mathematics is an amalgam of history, biography and popular science that sheds light on a world rarely supposed to possess such importance, intrigue and charm."--BOOK JACKET.