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Humble Pi

When Math Goes Wrong in the Real World

When Math Goes Wrong in the Real World

When Math Goes Wrong in the Real World

By Matt Parker

By Matt Parker

By Matt Parker

By Matt Parker

By Matt Parker
Read by Matt Parker

By Matt Parker
Read by Matt Parker

Best Seller

Category: Humor

Category: Humor

Category: Humor | Audiobooks

Hardcover $27.00

Jan 21, 2020 | ISBN 9780593084687

Ebook $13.99

Jan 21, 2020 | ISBN 9780593084700

Audiobook Download $20.00

Jan 21, 2020 | 574 Minutes

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    Humble Pi by Matt Parker
    Hardcover $27.00
    Jan 21, 2020 | ISBN 9780593084687

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      Jan 21, 2020 | ISBN 9780593084687

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    About Humble Pi

    #1 INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER
     
    AN ADAM SAVAGE BOOK CLUB PICK

    The book-length answer to anyone who ever put their hand up in math class and asked, “When am I ever going to use this in the real world?” 

    “Fun, informative, and relentlessly entertaining, Humble Pi is a charming and very readable guide to some of humanity’s all-time greatest miscalculations—that also gives you permission to feel a little better about some of your own mistakes.” —Ryan North, author of How to Invent Everything 

    Our whole world is built on math, from the code running a website to the equations enabling the design of skyscrapers and bridges. Most of the time this math works quietly behind the scenes . . . until it doesn’t. All sorts of seemingly innocuous mathematical mistakes can have significant consequences.

    Math is easy to ignore until a misplaced decimal point upends the stock market, a unit conversion error causes a plane to crash, or someone divides by zero and stalls a battleship in the middle of the ocean.

    Exploring and explaining a litany of glitches, near misses, and mathematical mishaps involving the internet, big data, elections, street signs, lotteries, the Roman Empire, and an Olympic team, Matt Parker uncovers the bizarre ways math trips us up, and what this reveals about its essential place in our world. Getting it wrong has never been more fun.

    About Humble Pi

    #1 INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER
     
    AN ADAM SAVAGE BOOK CLUB PICK

    The book-length answer to anyone who ever put their hand up in math class and asked, “When am I ever going to use this in the real world?” 

    “Fun, informative, and relentlessly entertaining, Humble Pi is a charming and very readable guide to some of humanity’s all-time greatest miscalculations—that also gives you permission to feel a little better about some of your own mistakes.” —Ryan North, author of How to Invent Everything 

    Our whole world is built on math, from the code running a website to the equations enabling the design of skyscrapers and bridges. Most of the time this math works quietly behind the scenes . . . until it doesn’t. All sorts of seemingly innocuous mathematical mistakes can have significant consequences.

    Math is easy to ignore until a misplaced decimal point upends the stock market, a unit conversion error causes a plane to crash, or someone divides by zero and stalls a battleship in the middle of the ocean.

    Exploring and explaining a litany of glitches, near misses, and mathematical mishaps involving the internet, big data, elections, street signs, lotteries, the Roman Empire, and an Olympic team, Matt Parker uncovers the bizarre ways math trips us up, and what this reveals about its essential place in our world. Getting it wrong has never been more fun.

    About Humble Pi

    #1 INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER
     
    AN ADAM SAVAGE BOOK CLUB PICK

    The book-length answer to anyone who ever put their hand up in math class and asked, “When am I ever going to use this in the real world?” 

    “Fun, informative, and relentlessly entertaining, Humble Pi is a charming and very readable guide to some of humanity’s all-time greatest miscalculations—that also gives you permission to feel a little better about some of your own mistakes.” —Ryan North, author of How to Invent Everything 

    Our whole world is built on math, from the code running a website to the equations enabling the design of skyscrapers and bridges. Most of the time this math works quietly behind the scenes . . . until it doesn’t. All sorts of seemingly innocuous mathematical mistakes can have significant consequences.

    Math is easy to ignore until a misplaced decimal point upends the stock market, a unit conversion error causes a plane to crash, or someone divides by zero and stalls a battleship in the middle of the ocean.

    Exploring and explaining a litany of glitches, near misses, and mathematical mishaps involving the internet, big data, elections, street signs, lotteries, the Roman Empire, and an Olympic team, Matt Parker uncovers the bizarre ways math trips us up, and what this reveals about its essential place in our world. Getting it wrong has never been more fun.

    Read An Excerpt

    Read An Excerpt

    Read An Excerpt

    Listen to a sample from Humble Pi

    About Matt Parker

    Matt Parker is the author of Things to Make and Do in the Fourth Dimension as well as a stand-up comedian and YouTuber with over 100 million views. He writes about math for The Guardian, hosts the Science Channel’s Outrageous… More about Matt Parker

    About Matt Parker

    Matt Parker is the author of Things to Make and Do in the Fourth Dimension as well as a stand-up comedian and YouTuber with over 100 million views. He writes about math for The Guardian, hosts the Science Channel’s Outrageous… More about Matt Parker

    About Matt Parker

    Matt Parker is the author of Things to Make and Do in the Fourth Dimension as well as a stand-up comedian and YouTuber with over 100 million views. He writes about math for The Guardian, hosts the Science Channel’s Outrageous… More about Matt Parker

    Product Details

    Category: Humor

    Hardcover | $27.00
    Published by Riverhead Books
    Jan 21, 2020 | 336 Pages | 6 x 9 | ISBN 9780593084687

    Category: Humor

    Ebook | $13.99
    Published by Riverhead Books
    Jan 21, 2020 | 336 Pages | ISBN 9780593084700

    Category: Humor | Audiobooks

    Audiobook Download | $20.00
    Published by Penguin Audio
    Jan 21, 2020 | 574 Minutes | ISBN 9780593166864

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    Praise

    Praise for Matt Parker and Humble Pi:

    “Parker is consistently very funny . . . . highly entertaining.” —The Guardian

    “Parker has a sly wit. . . . A clever, amusing book about some of life’s more serious problems; highly recommended.” —Library Journal

    “A fascinating and deeply surprising journey into the hilarious and sometimes tragic realm of mathematical error. Brilliant.” —Tim Harford, author of The Undercover Economist and Messy

    “[Matt Parker] shows off math at its most playful and multifarious.” —Jordan Ellenberg, author of How Not to Be Wrong  

    “Matt Parker is some sort of unholy fusion of prankster, wizard, and brilliant nerd—math is rarely this clever, funny, and ever so slightly naughty.”—Adam Rutherford, author of Creation

    “A pleasant exploration of our deeply held incompetence at mathematics. . . . Fun reading for nonmathematicians.” —Kirkus Reviews

    “Numbers to die for. Four stars.” —Mail on Sunday

    “Matt Parker has pulled off something wonderful . . . his stories are superb.” —The Daily Mail

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