Evolution of Mathematical Concepts - Paperback

by Raymond L. Wilder (Author)

Accessible to students and relevant to specialists, this remarkable book by a prominent educator offers a unique perspective on the evolutionary development of mathematics. Rather than conducting a survey of the history or philosophy of mathematics, Raymond L. Wilder envisions mathematics as a broad cultural phenomenon. His treatment examines and illustrates how such concepts as number and length were affected by historic and social events.
Starting with a brief consideration of preliminary notions, this study explores the early evolution of numbers, the evolution of geometry, and the conquest of the infinite as embodied by real numbers. A detailed look at the processes of evolution concludes with an examination of the evolutionary aspects of modern mathematics.

Author Biography

Raymond Wilder (1896-1982) was Professor of Mathematics at the University of Michigan and a Research Associate and lecturer at The University of California, Santa Barbara. He is the author of Dover's Introduction to the Foundations of Mathematics.