Sacred Mathematics: Japanese Temple Geometry

Description

Between the seventeenth and nineteenth centuries Japan was totally isolated from the West by imperial decree. During that time, a unique brand of homegrown mathematics flourished, one that was completely uninfluenced by developments in Western mathematics. People from all walks of life--samurai, farmers, and merchants--inscribed a wide variety of geometry problems on wooden tablets called sangaku and hung them in Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines throughout Japan. Sacred Mathematics is the first book published in the West to fully examine this tantalizing--and incredibly beautiful--mathematical tradition. Fukagawa Hidetoshi and Tony Rothman present for the first time in English excerpts from the travel diary of a nineteenth-century Japanese mathematician, Yamaguchi Kanzan, who journeyed on foot throughout Japan to collect temple geometry problems. The authors set this fascinating travel narrative--and almost everything else that is known about temple geometry--within the broader cultural and historical context of the period. They explain the sacred and devotional aspects of sangaku, and reveal how Japanese folk mathematicians discovered many well-known theorems independently of mathematicians in the West--and in some cases much earlier. The book is generously illustrated with photographs of the tablets and stunning artwork of the period. Then there are the geometry problems themselves, nearly two hundred of them, fully illustrated and ranging from the utterly simple to the virtually impossible. Solutions for most are provided. A unique book in every respect, Sacred Mathematics demonstrates how mathematical thinking can vary by culture yet transcend cultural and geographic boundaries.

Fukagawa Hidetoshi is a retired high-school teacher in Japan, and one of the world's experts on "sangaku". He is the coauthor of "Japanese Temple Geometry Problems". Tony Rothman is a theoretical cosmologist who lectures in physics at Princeton University. His books include "Everything's Relative and Other Fables from Science and Technology".

Winner of the 2008 PROSE Award in Mathematics, Association of American Publishers "Now Fukagawa Hidetoshi, a mathematics teacher, and writer Tony Rothman present a collection of Sangaku problems in their book, Sacred Mathematics. The puzzles range from simple algebra within the grasp of any intermediate-school student, to challenging problems that require graduate-school mathematics to solve. Copious illustrations and many detailed solutions show the scope, complexity, and beauty of what was tackled in Japan during the Tokugawa shogunate."--Peter J. Lu, Nature "Fascinating and beautiful book."--Physics World "This book is the most thorough (and beautiful) account of Japanese temple geometry (sangaku) available."--Paul J. Campbell, Mathematics Magazine "The difficult problems with complete solutions and rich commentary that comprise the heart of this book will interest every mathematics student."--Choice "This is a marvelous book. Good books are not just written or compiled, they are crafted. Sacred Mathematics is a well crafted work that combines mathematics, history and cultural considerations into an intriguing narrative... The writing style is appealing and the organization of material excellent. Princeton University Press must be congratulated on producing this quality publication and offering it at an agreeable price. This book is highly recommended for personal reading and library acquisition. It should be especially appealing to problem solvers."--Frank J. Swetz, Convergence "A unique book in every respect. Sacred Mathematics demonstrates how mathematical thinking can vary by culture yet transcend cultural and geographic boundaries."--International Institute for Asian Studies Newsletter