In Pursuit of the Unknown

The seventeen equations that form the basis for life as we know it.

Most people are familiar with history’s great equations: Newton’s Law of Gravity, for instance, or Einstein’s theory of relativity. But the way these mathematical breakthroughs have contributed to human progress is seldom appreciated. In In Pursuit of the Unknown, celebrated mathematician Ian Stewart untangles the roots of our most important mathematical statements to show that equations have long been a driving force behind nearly every aspect of our lives.

Using seventeen of our most crucial equations — including the Wave Equation that allowed engineers to measure a building’s response to earthquakes, saving countless lives, and the Black-Scholes model, used by bankers to track the price of financial derivatives over time — Stewart illustrates that many of the advances we now take for granted were made possible by mathematical discoveries.

An approachable, lively, and informative guide to the mathematical building blocks of modern life, In Pursuit of the Unknown is a penetrating exploration of how we have also used equations to make sense of, and in turn influence, our world.

Table of Contents

1 The squaw on the hippopotamus

2 Shortening the proceedings

3 Ghosts of departed quantities

4 The system of the world

5 Portent of the ideal world

6 Much ado about knotting

7 Patterns of chance

8 Good vibrations

9 Ripples and blips

10 The ascent of humanity

11 Waves in the ether

12 Law and disorder

13 One thing is absolute

14 Quantum weirdness

15 Codes, communications, and computers

16 The imbalance of nature

17 The Midas formula

About the Author

Ian Stewart is Emeritus Professor of Mathematics and active researcher at the University of Warwick. He is also a regular research visitor at the University of Houston, the Institute of Mathematics and Its Applications in Minneapolis, and the Santa Fe institute. His writing has appeared in New Scientist, Discover, Scientific American, and many newspapers in the U.K. and U.S. He lives in Coventry, England.