ENGLISH

Mathematics and Humor

By John Allen Paulos

Book information

Publisher
University of Chicago Press
Year
1980
ISBN
0226650251, 9780226650258
Google Books ID
NguRFULe3QUC
Open Library ID
OL21195645M
Language
english
Format
PDF
Filesize
1 MB (1521105 bytes)
Pages
126\126
Orientation
yes
Scanned
yes
Time added
2012-03-17 06:00:00
Математика;Популярная математика

Description

John Allen Paulos cleverly scrutinizes the mathematical structures of jokes, puns, paradoxes, spoonerisms, riddles, and other forms of humor, drawing examples from such sources as Rabelais, Shakespeare, James Beattie, René Thom, Lewis Carroll, Arthur Koestler, W. C. Fields, and Woody Allen."Jokes, paradoxes, riddles, and the art of non-sequitur are revealed with great perception and insight in this illuminating account of the relationship between humor and mathematics."—Joseph Williams, New York Times"'Leave your mind alone,' said a Thurber cartoon, and a really complete and convincing analysis of what humour is might spoil all jokes forever. This book avoids that danger. What it does. . .is describe broadly several kinds of mathematical theory and apply them to throw sidelights on how many kinds of jokes work."—New Scientist"Many scholars nowadays write seriously about the ludicrous. Some merely manage to be dull. A few—like Paulos—are brilliant in an odd endeavor."—Los Angeles Times Book Review

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