The Mystery of the Aleph: Mathematics, the Kabbalah, and the Search for Infinity
by:
Amir D. Aczel (author)
A compelling narrative that blends a story of infinity with the tagic tale of a tormented and brilliant mathematician. From the end of the ninteenth century until his death, one of history's greatest mathematicians languished in an asylum, driven mad by an almost Faustian thirst for universal...
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A compelling narrative that blends a story of infinity with the tagic tale of a tormented and brilliant mathematician. From the end of the ninteenth century until his death, one of history's greatest mathematicians languished in an asylum, driven mad by an almost Faustian thirst for universal knowledge. THE MYSTERY OF THE ALEPH tells the story of Georg Cantor (1845-1918), a Russian born German whose work on the 'continuum problem' would bring us closer than any mathemetician before him in helping us to comprehend the nature of infinity. A respected mathematician himself, Dr. Aczel follows Cantor's life and traces the roots of his enigmatic theories. From the Pythagoreans, the Greek cult of mathematics, to the mystical Jewish numerology found in the Kabbalah, THE MYSTERY OF THE ALEPH follows the search for an answer that may never truly be trusted.
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Format: paperback
ISBN:
9780743422994 (0743422996)
Publish date: September 1st 2001
Publisher: Washington Square Press
Pages no: 258
Edition language: English
A wonderful history of mankind's grappling with the concept of infinity where mathematics, philosophy and religion intersect in amazing ways. This is a relatively short book but it is packed with fascinating stories about ancient Greek philosophers, kabalists, Galileo, Descartes, Georg Cantor, Kurt...