The G. H. Hardy Reader

G. H. Hardy ranks among the greatest twentieth-century mathematicians. This book introduces this extraordinary individual and his writing.

Donald J. Albers (Edited by), Gerald L. Alexanderson (Edited by), William Dunham (Edited by)

9781107135550, The Mathematical Association of America

Hardback, published 11 April 2016

412 pages, 24 b/w illus.
22.9 x 15.2 x 2.4 cm, 0.72 kg

'The editors are to be congratulated on putting together this beautiful 'reader' with material from so many different sources, which illustrates so well the life, character and work of one of the great mathematicians of the twentieth century, Godfrey Harold Hardy (1877-1947). Even if you are familiar with Hardy's masterpiece A Mathematician's Apology or his book on Ramanujan, Ramanujan: Twelve Lectures on Subjects Suggested by His Life and Work you will find a wealth of new and fascinating material in this 'reader' about Hardy.' Kenneth S. Williams, Canadian Mathematical Society Notes

G. H. Hardy (1877–1947) ranks among the great mathematicians of the twentieth century. He did essential research in number theory and analysis, held professorships at Cambridge and Oxford, wrote important textbooks as well as the classic A Mathematician's Apology, and famously collaborated with J. E. Littlewood and Srinivasa Ramanujan. Hardy was a colorful character with remarkable expository skills. This book is a feast of G. H. Hardy's writing. There are selections of his mathematical papers, his book reviews, his tributes to departed colleagues. Some articles are serious, whereas others display a wry sense of humor. And there are recollections by those who knew Hardy, along with biographical and mathematical pieces written explicitly for this collection. Fans of Hardy should find much here to like. And for those unfamiliar with his work, The G. H. Hardy Reader provides an introduction to this extraordinary individual.

Part I. Biography: 1. Hardy's life
2. The letter from Ramanujan to Hardy, 16 January 1913
3. A letter from Bertrand Russell to Lady Ottoline Morrell, 2 February 1913
4. The Indian mathematician Ramanujan
5. Epilogue from the man who knew infinity
6. Posters of 'Hardy's years at Oxford'
7. A glimpse of J. E. Littlewood
8. A letter from Freeman Dyson to C. P. Snow, 22 May 1967, and two letters from Hardy to Dyson
9. Miss Gertrude Hardy
Part II. Writings by and about G. H. Hardy: 10. Hardy on writing books
11. Selections from Hardy's writings
12. Selections from what others have said about Hardy
Part III. Mathematics: 13. An introduction to the theory of numbers
14. Prime numbers
15. The theory of numbers
16. The Riemann zeta-function and lattice point problems
17. Four Hardy gems
18. What is geometry?
19. The case against the mathematical tripos
20. The mathematician on cricket
21. Cricket for the rest of us
22. A mathematical theorem about golf
23. Mathematics in war-time
24. Mathematics
25. Asymptotic formulæ in combinatory analysis (excerpts) with S. Ramanujan
26. A new solution of Waring's problem (excerpts), with J. E. Littlewood
27. Some notes on certain theorems in higher trigonometry
28. The Integral _?0sin xx dx and further remarks on the integral _?0sin xx dx
Part IV. Tributes: 29. Dr. Glaisher and the 'messenger of mathematics'
30. David Hilbert
31. Edmund Landau (with H. Heilbronn)
32. Gösta Mittag-Leffler
Part V. Book Reviews: 33. Osgood's calculus and Johnson's calculus
34. Hadamard: the psychology of invention in the mathematical field
35. Hulburt: differential and integral calculus
36. Bôcher: an introduction to the study of integral equations.

Subject Areas: Algorithms & data structures [UMB], History of mathematics [PBX], Functional analysis & transforms [PBKF], Mathematics [PB]