Topic: Mathematics Books

[johnny red]

I am interested in relearning the math that I forgot from high school and college.  Can anyone suggest any math books that you think would be helpful short of text books?  Are the For Dummies books good for this sort of thing?

[neurotraveller]

I found Math Smart from the Princeton Review was a great refresher, and the Painless series is always decent.

[Xptical]

Not sure about books, but I usually brush-up using these resources:

http://www.khanacademy.org/

https://www.coursera.org/courses

http://ocw.mit.edu/index.htm

I prefer the instructor-led videos for getting the concepts down.

[daemonowner]

Innumeracy by John Allen Paulos is a fun read.

[mgoose]

Innumeracy by John Allen Paulos is a fun read.

I second this as well, a great read and will help you understand math concepts in a broader way

[Greenlee]

http://books.google.com/books/about/Calculus_On_Manifolds.html?id=POIJJJcCyUkC

Starts with simple linear algebra and takes you to very high places. Provides elegant proofs of stuff like the chain rule in an arbitrary number of dimensions.

This book does not use much unexplained technical language, but somehow packs several semesters of calculus into 160 pages.

(edit: this might be considered a textbook. but it is not a traditional choice for a course)

[TheIrreverend]

The Road to Reality by Roger Penrose.

[Johnny Slick]

If you just want to read something about math for the joy of reading - and hey, there's no reason why you can't do that while also learning stuff - I recommend two books:

The Drunkard's Walk by Leonard Mlodinow (about probability)
The Calculus Diaries by Jennifer Oullette (about... well, guess)

Both are a lot of fun and if you're like me will spur you on to learning moar math sutffs plz

[Beη]

I am interested in relearning the math that I forgot from high school and college.  Can anyone suggest any math books that you think would be helpful short of text books?  Are the For Dummies books good for this sort of thing?

Care to be a bit more specific about which math you'd like to relearn? 

I've found the Schaum's Outline series to be pretty useful, and have one to supplement just about every math or science class I have taken.  They provide a very brief review of a topic, followed by a bunch or worked out examples.  They are great if you are relearning something.  Also, they are very inexpensive (a couple dollars used, maybe $25 US new).  I'd recommend getting a couple of those, and then possibly an additional "real" textbook if you feel you need a more in depth treatment of the topics.

[jt512]

If you just want to read something about math for the joy of reading - and hey, there's no reason why you can't do that while also learning stuff - I recommend two books:

The Drunkard's Walk by Leonard Mlodinow (about probability)
The Calculus Diaries by Jennifer Oullette (about... well, guess)

Both are a lot of fun and if you're like me will spur you on to learning moar math sutffs plz

To that list I'd add The Monty Hall Problem by Jason Rosenhouse.

[Beη]

If you just want to read something about math for the joy of reading - and hey, there's no reason why you can't do that while also learning stuff - I recommend two books:

The Drunkard's Walk by Leonard Mlodinow (about probability)
The Calculus Diaries by Jennifer Oullette (about... well, guess)

Both are a lot of fun and if you're like me will spur you on to learning moar math sutffs plz

To that list I'd add The Monty Hall Problem by Jason Rosenhouse.

Also,
Fermat's Enigma, by our own Simon Singh
e: The story of a number
and Zero: The biography of a dangerous idea

[Beη]

Also, to the OP: check out your local library, chances are they have some math textbooks.  Find a subject you are interested in, and grab as many text books on the subject as you can carry.  You may find some that "click" with you better than others, and a concept that is confusing in one text may be better explained in another.  Every time I've take a college math or science course, I always go to the university library and get a few additional books on the subject for these reasons.

[petrolpetal]

If you just want to read something about math for the joy of reading - and hey, there's no reason why you can't do that while also learning stuff - I recommend two books:
The Drunkard's Walk by Leonard Mlodinow (about probability)+
The Calculus Diaries by Jennifer Oullette (about... well, guess)

Both are a lot of fun and if you're like me will spur you on to learning moar

To that list I'd add The Monty Hall Problem by Jason Rosenhouse.

And I would add 'Alex's adventures in numberland'

[Nir]

IMHO the best way to learn is by examples.

I would NOT go for a text book.
if you are looking for high school level math, get yourself the Martin Gardner Sci-Am collection. There are 15 of them, most go for under $3 as used (in amazon or abebooks). there's loads and loads of interesting high school level math there - geometry, probability, discrete math, and the list goes on.

if you aim a bit higher, I would recommend Paul J. Nahin books. these require some higher calculus level and are less approachable than the Gardner books. They are however full with interesting mathematical detective-like investigations ('when least is best' would be a good start).
Again, be warned the the Nahin books are packed with sometimes non trivial university level math.


 

[Green Ideas]