[PDF] Explanation And Proof In Mathematics eBook

Author : Gila Hanna
Publisher : Springer Science & Business Media
Page : 289 pages
File Size : 33,36 MB
Release : 2009-12-04
Category : Education
ISBN : 1441905766

GET BOOK

In the four decades since Imre Lakatos declared mathematics a "quasi-empirical science," increasing attention has been paid to the process of proof and argumentation in the field -- a development paralleled by the rise of computer technology and the mounting interest in the logical underpinnings of mathematics. Explanantion and Proof in Mathematics assembles perspectives from mathematics education and from the philosophy and history of mathematics to strengthen mutual awareness and share recent findings and advances in their interrelated fields. With examples ranging from the geometrists of the 17th century and ancient Chinese algorithms to cognitive psychology and current educational practice, contributors explore the role of refutation in generating proofs, the varied links between experiment and deduction, the use of diagrammatic thinking in addition to pure logic, and the uses of proof in mathematics education (including a critique of "authoritative" versus "authoritarian" teaching styles). A sampling of the coverage: The conjoint origins of proof and theoretical physics in ancient Greece. Proof as bearers of mathematical knowledge. Bridging knowing and proving in mathematical reasoning. The role of mathematics in long-term cognitive development of reasoning. Proof as experiment in the work of Wittgenstein. Relationships between mathematical proof, problem-solving, and explanation. Explanation and Proof in Mathematics is certain to attract a wide range of readers, including mathematicians, mathematics education professionals, researchers, students, and philosophers and historians of mathematics.

Author : Gabriele Lolli
Publisher : MIT Press
Page : 177 pages
File Size : 48,12 MB
Release : 2022-09-27
Category : Mathematics
ISBN : 0262371049

GET BOOK

Why mathematics is not merely formulaic: an argument that to write a mathematical proof is tantamount to inventing a story. In The Meaning of Proofs, mathematician Gabriele Lolli argues that to write a mathematical proof is tantamount to inventing a story. Lolli offers not instructions for how to write mathematical proofs, but a philosophical and poetic reflection on mathematical proofs as narrative. Mathematics, imprisoned within its symbols and images, Lolli writes, says nothing if its meaning is not narrated in a story. The minute mathematicians open their mouths to explain something—the meaning of x, how to find y—they are framing a narrative. Every proof is the story of an adventure, writes Lolli, a journey into an unknown land to open a new, connected route; once the road is open, we correct it, expand it. Just as fairy tales offer a narrative structure in which new characters can be inserted into recurring forms of the genre in original ways, in mathematics, each new abstract concept is the protagonist of a different theory supported by the general techniques of mathematical reasoning. In ancient Greece, there was more than an analogy between literature and mathematics, there was direct influence. Euclid’s proofs have roots in poetry and rhetoric. Mathematics, Lolli asserts, is not the mere manipulation of formulas.

Author : Martin Aigner
Publisher : Springer Science & Business Media
Page : 194 pages
File Size : 21,46 MB
Release : 2013-06-29
Category : Mathematics
ISBN : 3662223430

GET BOOK

According to the great mathematician Paul Erdös, God maintains perfect mathematical proofs in The Book. This book presents the authors candidates for such "perfect proofs," those which contain brilliant ideas, clever connections, and wonderful observations, bringing new insight and surprising perspectives to problems from number theory, geometry, analysis, combinatorics, and graph theory. As a result, this book will be fun reading for anyone with an interest in mathematics.

Author : David A. Reid
Publisher : BRILL
Page : 265 pages
File Size : 23,99 MB
Release : 2010-01-01
Category : Education
ISBN : 946091246X

GET BOOK

Research on teaching and learning proof and proving has expanded in recent decades. This reflects the growth of mathematics education research in general, but also an increased emphasis on proof in mathematics education.

Author : Joel David Hamkins
Publisher : MIT Press
Page : 132 pages
File Size : 41,45 MB
Release : 2021-02-23
Category : Mathematics
ISBN : 0262362562

GET BOOK

How to write mathematical proofs, shown in fully-worked out examples. This is a companion volume Joel Hamkins's Proof and the Art of Mathematics, providing fully worked-out solutions to all of the odd-numbered exercises as well as a few of the even-numbered exercises. In many cases, the solutions go beyond the exercise question itself to the natural extensions of the ideas, helping readers learn how to approach a mathematical investigation. As Hamkins asks, "Once you have solved a problem, why not push the ideas harder to see what further you can prove with them?" These solutions offer readers examples of how to write a mathematical proofs. The mathematical development of this text follows the main book, with the same chapter topics in the same order, and all theorem and exercise numbers in this text refer to the corresponding statements of the main text.

Author : Daniel J. Velleman
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
Page : 401 pages
File Size : 18,85 MB
Release : 2006-01-16
Category : Mathematics
ISBN : 0521861241

GET BOOK

Many students have trouble the first time they take a mathematics course in which proofs play a significant role. This new edition of Velleman's successful text will prepare students to make the transition from solving problems to proving theorems by teaching them the techniques needed to read and write proofs. The book begins with the basic concepts of logic and set theory, to familiarize students with the language of mathematics and how it is interpreted. These concepts are used as the basis for a step-by-step breakdown of the most important techniques used in constructing proofs. The author shows how complex proofs are built up from these smaller steps, using detailed 'scratch work' sections to expose the machinery of proofs about the natural numbers, relations, functions, and infinite sets. To give students the opportunity to construct their own proofs, this new edition contains over 200 new exercises, selected solutions, and an introduction to Proof Designer software. No background beyond standard high school mathematics is assumed. This book will be useful to anyone interested in logic and proofs: computer scientists, philosophers, linguists, and of course mathematicians.

Author : Rowan Garnier
Publisher :
Page : 332 pages
File Size : 35,71 MB
Release : 1996-08
Category : Mathematics
ISBN :

GET BOOK

"Proof" has been and remains one of the concepts which characterises mathematics. Covering basic propositional and predicate logic as well as discussing axiom systems and formal proofs, the book seeks to explain what mathematicians understand by proofs and how they are communicated. The authors explore the principle techniques of direct and indirect proof including induction, existence and uniqueness proofs, proof by contradiction, constructive and non-constructive proofs, etc. Many examples from analysis and modern algebra are included. The exceptionally clear style and presentation ensures that the book will be useful and enjoyable to those studying and interested in the notion of mathematical "proof."

Author : Theodore A. Sundstrom
Publisher : Prentice Hall
Page : 0 pages
File Size : 39,75 MB
Release : 2007
Category : Logic, Symbolic and mathematical
ISBN : 9780131877184

GET BOOK

Focusing on the formal development of mathematics, this book shows readers how to read, understand, write, and construct mathematical proofs.Uses elementary number theory and congruence arithmetic throughout. Focuses on writing in mathematics. Reviews prior mathematical work with “Preview Activities” at the start of each section. Includes “Activities” throughout that relate to the material contained in each section. Focuses on Congruence Notation and Elementary Number Theorythroughout.For professionals in the sciences or engineering who need to brush up on their advanced mathematics skills. Mathematical Reasoning: Writing and Proof, 2/E Theodore Sundstrom

Author : Richard H. Hammack
Publisher :
Page : 314 pages
File Size : 33,24 MB
Release : 2016-01-01
Category : Mathematics
ISBN : 9780989472111

GET BOOK

This book is an introduction to the language and standard proof methods of mathematics. It is a bridge from the computational courses (such as calculus or differential equations) that students typically encounter in their first year of college to a more abstract outlook. It lays a foundation for more theoretical courses such as topology, analysis and abstract algebra. Although it may be more meaningful to the student who has had some calculus, there is really no prerequisite other than a measure of mathematical maturity.