Symmetry Discovered

Newly enlarged classic covers basic concepts and terminology, lucid discussions of geometric symmetry, other symmetries and approximate symmetry, symmetry in nature, in science, more. Solutions to problems. Expanded bibliography. 1975 edition.

At the heart of relativity theory, quantum mechanics, string theory, and much of modern cosmology lies one concept: symmetry. In Why Beauty Is Truth, world-famous mathematician Ian Stewart narrates the history of the emergence of this remarkable area of study. Stewart introduces us to such characters as the Renaissance Italian genius, rogue, scholar, and gambler Girolamo Cardano, who stole the modern method of solving cubic equations and published it in the first important book on algebra, and the young revolutionary Evariste Galois, who refashioned the whole of mathematics and founded the field of group theory only to die in a pointless duel over a woman before his work was published. Stewart also explores the strange numerology of real mathematics, in which particular numbers have unique and unpredictable properties related to symmetry. He shows how Wilhelm Killing discovered "Lie groups" with 14, 52, 78, 133, and 248 dimensions-groups whose very existence is a profound puzzle. Finally, Stewart describes the world beyond superstrings: the "octonionic" symmetries that may explain the very existence of the universe.

This nicely produced volume focuses on the informal analysis of geometrical patterns. By means of a series of carefully selected tasks, the book leads readers to discover some real mathematics. There are no formulas to memorize and no procedures to follow. It is a guide to start you in the right direction and bring you back if you stray too far. Discovery is left to you.

In the 1800s mathematicians introduced a formal theory of symmetry: group theory. Now a branch of abstract algebra, this subject first arose in the theory of equations. Symmetry is an immensely important concept in mathematics and throughout the sciences, and its applications range across the entire subject. Symmetry governs the structure of crystals, innumerable types of pattern formation, how systems change their state as parameters vary; and fundamental physics is governed by symmetries in the laws of nature. It is highly visual, with applications that include animal markings, locomotion, evolutionary biology, elastic buckling, waves, the shape of the Earth, and the form of galaxies. In this Very Short Introduction, Ian Stewart demonstrates its deep implications, and shows how it plays a major role in the current search to unify relativity and quantum theory. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

Symmetry is of interest in two ways, artistic and mathematical. It underlies much scientific thought, playing an important role in chemistry and atomic physics, and a dominant one in crystallography. It is important in architectural and engineering design and particularly in the decorative arts. This book provides a comprehensive account of symmetry in a form acceptable to readers without much detailed mathematical knowledge or experience who nevertheless want to understand the basic principles of the subject. It will be useful in school and other libraries and as preliminary reading for students of crystallography. The treatment is geometrical, which should appeal to art students and to readers whose mathematical interests are that way inclined.

What are the thinking processes and knowledge resources involved in a complex discovery? How can the physics of solids, the physics of nuclei, and elementary particle physics cross-fertilise in spite of the widely differing domains and energy scales they deal with? This book addresses the questions by reconstructing and examining from the historical epistemological perspective the fascinating heuristic path to the concept of spontaneous symmetry breaking. This analysis especially brings to light the role that analogical reasoning and mathematical reformulations played in the discovery process, as well as the influence of the Japanese milieu and approach to physical problems.

Buckyballs are hollow-sphere molecules of 60 carbon atoms arranged such that they resemble the famous geodesic domes of Buckminster Fuller. Science writer Baggott recounts how the new form of the common element was developed; the applications of its radically different properties, particularly in high-temperature superconductors; and the implications of its discovery for chemistry and the conception of large carbon structures. Most of his account is accessible to readers with little or no scientific background. Annotation copyright by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR