Product Description

A compelling narrative that blends a story of infinity with the tagic tale of a tormented and brilliant mathematician. From the end of the ninteenth century until his death, one of history's greatest mathematicians languished in an asylum, driven mad by an almost Faustian thirst for universal knowledge. THE MYSTERY OF THE ALEPH tells the story of Georg Cantor (1845-1918), a Russian born German whose work on the 'continuum problem' would bring us closer than any mathemetician before him in helping us to comprehend the nature of infinity. A respected mathematician himself, Dr. Aczel follows Cantor's life and traces the roots of his enigmatic theories. From the Pythagoreans, the Greek cult of mathematics, to the mystical Jewish numerology found in the Kabbalah, THE MYSTERY OF THE ALEPH follows the search for an answer that may never truly be trusted.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #321298 in Books
• Published on: 2002-03-18
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 272 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
The search for infinity, that sublime and barely comprehensible mystery, has exercised both mathematicians and theologians over many generations: Jewish mystics in particular laboured with elaborate numerological schema to imagine the pure nothingness of infinity, while scientists such as Galileo, the great astronomer, and Georg Cantor, the inventor of modern set theory (as well as a gifted Shakespeare scholar), brought their training to bear on the unimaginable infinitude of numbers and of space, seeking the key to the universe.

In this sometimes technical but always accessible narrative, Amir Aczel, the author of the spirited study Fermat's Last Theorem, contemplates such matters as the Greek philosopher Zeno's several paradoxes; the curious careers of defrocked priests, (literal) mad scientists, and sober scholars whose work helped untangle some of those paradoxes; and the conundrums that modern mathematics has substituted for the puzzles of yore. To negotiate some of those enigmas requires a belief not unlike faith, Aczel hints, noting, "We may find it hard to believe that an elegant and seemingly very simple system of numbers and operations such as addition and multiplication--elements so intuitive that children learn them in school--should be fraught with holes and logical hurdles." Hard to believe, indeed. Aczel's book makes for a fine and fun exercise in brain stretching while providing a learned survey of the regions at which science and religion meet. --Gregory McNamee

About the Author
Amir D. Aczel, Ph.d, is the author of FERMAT'S LAST THEOREM, GOD'S EQUATION, EINSTEIN'S RELATIVITY AND THE EXPANDING UNIVERSE and several other books. His work has been translated into Turkish, Hebrew, French, German, Italian, Chinese and Spanish. An internationally known mathemacian, he lives in Waltham Massachusetts.

Customer Reviews

Defies Intuition but it's well worth a try.
Once again Amir Aczel has provided us with an enthusiastic and intriguing look at a fascinating subject.Trying to come to terms with the Infinite is a difficult task that, as explained in the book, has claimed many victims. Aczel does a wonderful job turning the reader into a victim, although thankfully not as critical as the likes of Cantor and Godel. Much like his previous books Aczel blends the science( in this case mind boggling mathematics)into a fascinating background, paying great attention to the lives and characters of those concerned. The biographies of Gallileo and Kurt Godel are particularly interesting, especially as one would think that there was little left to know about them. However the centre of attention is the life and work of Georg Cantor, the mathematician synonomous with discoveries concerning the infinite. It would be difficult to find a more interesting and bizarre story than that of Georg Cantor but the real source of intrigue are his ideas and those of others concerning the subject of infinity. Added to that is a touch of mystisism in the form of "Kabalah" making Infinity an even more awesome concept.

While the book is written in an entertaining and absorbing style with ideas explained simply and concisley, much contemplation is required by the reader. I personally would reccomend that one take the neccesary time in order to try come to terms with a concept that "defies intuition". Four stars then, and the only reason I didn't give it five is because I can still sleep at night...barely.

Contemplating the Infinite
One of only a handful of absorbing books that I have read in one sitting. It started extremely well so I was a little shaken when I read on page 24 how Archimedes compared the volumes of a sphere and a cone (it was a sphere and a cylinder I believe). However, rest assured, this was the only glitch I found in an excellent exposition of the Infinite from a set-theoretical approach.
As this book is not particularly mathematical, and is extremely well-written, it should appeal to those readers with a strong interest in mathematics, without the mathematical hardware behind them. Aczel's book makes a great accompaniment to Rudy Rucker's "Infinity and the Mind", which is much more mathematical, and covers many more aspects of Infinity. I give Aczel's book 4 stars, as Rucker's is out there on its own with 5 for this particular topic area.
To complete the trilogy I recommend Maor's "To Infinity and Beyond", which is also a very easy read without being too mathematical.