My learning of more math

My guiding questions on Math: 1. How was calculus invented? 2. What resources are there linking math and art?

[smclaurie]

[smclaurie]

Hopi Indian Chanters (1926)

[smclaurie]

Books on the History of Calculus

I haven't read this book yet, although I skimmed it on Amazon. It looks fairly dry, and I think I will continue to look for a more interesting one to read.

"Were it not for the calculus, mathematicians would have no way to describe the acceleration of a motorcycle or the effect of gravity on thrown balls and distant planets, or to prove that a man could cross a room and eventually touch the opposite wall. Just how calculus makes these things possible and in doing so finds a correspondence between real numbers and the real world is the subject of this dazzling book by a writer of extraordinary clarity and stylistic brio. Even as he initiates us into the mysteries of real numbers, functions, and limits, Berlinski explores the furthest implications of his subject, revealing how the calculus reconciles the precision of numbers with the fluidity of the changing universe." From Amazon

This looks like just what I am looking for - it gives the history but also explains the concepts.

[smclaurie]

This is Lil Bub, a "special needs" cat born with dwarfism and 6 toes on each paw. She's amazing, and even has her own talk show. Check it out:

http://www.youtube.com/user/LilBubBub