Mrs. Perkins's Electric Quilt: And Other Intriguing Stories of Mathematical Physics

By Paul J. Nahin

An incomparable collection of stimulating math puzzles from bestselling author Paul Nahin

What does quilting have to do with electric circuit theory? The answer is just one of the fascinating ways that best-selling popular math writer Paul Nahin illustrates the deep interplay of math and physics in the world around us in his latest book of challenging mathematical puzzles, Mrs. Perkins's Electric Quilt. With his trademark combination of intriguing mathematical problems and the historical anecdotes surrounding them, Nahin invites readers on an exciting and informative exploration of some of the many ways math and physics combine to create something vastly more powerful, useful, and interesting than either is by itself.

In a series of brief and largely self-contained chapters, Nahin discusses a wide range of topics in which math and physics are mutually dependent and mutually illuminating, from Newtonian gravity and Newton's laws of mechanics to ballistics, air drag, and electricity. The mathematical subjects range from algebra, trigonometry, geometry, and calculus to differential equations, Fourier series, and theoretical and Monte Carlo probability. Each chapter includes problems--some three dozen in all--that challenge readers to try their hand at applying what they have learned. Just as in his other books of mathematical puzzles, Nahin discusses the historical background of each problem, gives many examples, includes MATLAB codes, and provides complete and detailed solutions at the end.

Mrs. Perkins's Electric Quilt will appeal to students interested in new math and physics applications, teachers looking for unusual examples to use in class--and anyone who enjoys popular math books.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0691135401
• ISBN13: 9780691135403
• Release Date: September 2009
• Publisher: Princeton University Press
• Length: 424 Pages
• Weight: 1.85 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.4" x 6.4" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

Very enjoyable exercise for the brain.

I have now read six of Paul Nahin's books and enjoyed them all. The one difference with this book is perhaps that it dosn't have a single underlying theme other then being a collection of very interesting problems in basic physics. They were all good but the first chapter hooked me: what is the position after five seconds of a particle with an applied force of kx**2? Sound trivial? It sure surprised me. In solving these problems he provides a perfect mix of math, physics, history, and anecdotes. As for prerequisites, a familiarity but not expertise with calculus and high school physics should be sufficient. By the way, another author very similar in style (except more towards theoretical than applied math) is John Derbyshire. Both gentlemen remind me of that one professor who could make any lecture so interesting that you were sad when the class ended.