Fair, witty appraisal of cranks, quacks, and quackeries of science and pseudoscience: hollow earth, Velikovsky, orgone energy, Dianetics, flying saucers, Bridey Murphy, food and medical fads, and much more.
The present volume contains a rich selection of 70 of the best of these brain teasers, in some cases including references to new developments related to the puzzle.
"I have always been intrigued by fringe science," writes Martin Gardner in the preface to this book, "perhaps for the same reason that I enjoy freak shows and circuses.
A new Postscript, examining the latest developments in the field, and specially written for this edition, is also included. The clarity of the text is especially enhanced by the brilliant graphics of Anthony Ravielli.
As a rule, we simply accept these tricks and "magic" without recognizing that they are really demonstrations of strict laws based on probability, sets, number theory, topology, and other branches of mathematics.This is the first book-length ...
The definitive work of Martin Gardner's brilliant, seven-decades-long career, "The Night Is Large" collects 54 of the most significant essays by this popular writer best known for his "Mathematical Games" columns which appeared in ...
They continue to be a marvel. This is the original 1983 edition and contains columns published from 1970-1972. It includes three columns on the game of Life.