Friday, June 16, 2017

The Friday 56 (107) & Book Beginnings: The (Fabulous) FIBONACCI Numbers by Alfred S. Posamentier & Ingmar Lehmann

The Friday 56 is a weekly meme hosted by Freda's Voice where every Friday you pick a book and turn to page 56 or 56%, and select a sentence or a few, as long as it's not a spoiler. For the full rules, visit the the page HERE
Book Beginnings is a weekly meme hosted by Rose City Reader that asks you to share the first sentence (or so) of the book you're reading.
**Note from Breana: Adri wanted to try out The Friday 56 and Book Beginnings. However, she is busy today so I will be around to answer comments and visit other blogs.**
909093Synopsis from Goodreads...

The most ubiquitous, and perhaps the most intriguing, number pattern in mathematics is the Fibonacci sequence. In this simple pattern beginning with two ones, each succeeding number is the sum of the two numbers immediately preceding it (1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, ad infinitum). Far from being just a curiosity, this sequence recurs in structures found throughout nature - from the arrangement of whorls on a pinecone to the branches of certain plant stems. All of which is astounding evidence for the deep mathematical basis of the natural world.

With admirable clarity, two veteran math educators take us on a fascinating tour of the many ramifications of the Fibonacci numbers. They begin with a brief history of a distinguished Italian discoverer, who, among other accomplishments, was responsible for popularizing the use of Arabic numerals in the West. Turning to botany, the authors demonstrate, through illustrative diagrams, the unbelievable connections between Fibonacci numbers and natural forms (pineapples, sunflowers, and daisies are just a few examples). In art, architecture, the stock market, and other areas of society and culture, they point out numerous examples of the Fibonacci sequence as well as its derivative, the "golden ratio." And of course in mathematics, as the authors amply demonstrate, there are almost boundless applications in probability, number theory, geometry, algebra, and Pascal's triangle, to name a few.

Accessible and appealing to even the most math-phobic individual, this fun and enlightening book allows the reader to appreciate the elegance of mathematics and its amazing applications in both natural and cultural settings...
Beginnings: “With the dawn of the thirteenth century, Europe began to wake from the long sleep of the Middle Ages and perceive faint glimmers of the coming Renaissance.”

56: “Although our focus is largely about the Fibonacci numbers, we should not think of Fibonacci as a mathematician who is known only for his now-famous sequence of numbers that bears his name.”
Comments: There is a long story as to how I found about this book. For now, let’s just say I was intrigued by the relationship of the golden ratio and the golden spiral–which is prevalent in both art and nature. Then I was further drawn in by the periodicity of both the numbers and equations the Fibonacci numbers can make. I just had to find out more, so I went to my library and picked this book up.

What are you reading this week?

18 comments:

  1. I don't read much nonfiction but this book does sound fascinating. I have a historical mystery with ghosts from my TBR mountain this week - Delia's Shadow by Jaime Lynn Moyer. Happy reading!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Now I'm curious! Thanks for sharing...and for visiting my blog.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That’s what I thought when I first heard about the Fibonacci sequence. Thanks for stopping by.

      Delete
  3. I don't think this is for me, but I hope you love it! Happy weekend!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I've heard of the Fibonacci sequence, first when I was reading DaVinci Code(I think!?) and now I hear my sons talking about it as they are big into coding.
    Enjoy your weekend!
    Here's my Friday Post Inspiration Pie
    Jo-Ann

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I haven’t read the DaVinci code yet, nor have I looked into coding. This book is my introduction to the Fibonacci sequence. Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  5. This sounds fascinating! It's not something I would normally gravitate towards, but I am definitely intrigued. Thank you for sharing! I hope you both have a great weekend!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. My co-blogger (Breana) was also intrigued by the book after she saw the excerpts. Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  6. Not really my genre, but it does sound like it could be an interesting read.

    ReplyDelete
  7. I've always loved numbers. I'll be watching for your review of this book. Hoping you enjoy it!

    My Friday 56 from The Nutting Girl

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. So far I like this book. It’s a really interesting read. Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  8. Oh dear, maths. Haha! Definitely not one for me, but I do hope you enjoy it.

    ReplyDelete
  9. This one sounds like nothing that I have ever read before! I love that it has such an interesting concept and the math is definitely something that is over my head. I hope that you enjoy this one. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The math is something that takes a bit to process, but for now I’m examining the relationship between the Fibonacci sequence and nature/art. Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  10. Not my usual type of read, but it sure sounds fascinating. :)

    ReplyDelete

Comments are appreciated and always welcome. :)

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...