A mathematical sightseeing tour of the natural world from the author of THE MAGICAL MAZE. Why do many flowers have five or eight petals, but very few have six or seven? Why do snowflakes have six-sided symmetry? Why do tigers have stripes but leopards have spots?

Mathematics is in nature like Sherlock Holmes is in evidence. Mathematics can look at a single snowflake and deduce the atomic geometry of its crystals. They can start with a violin string and reveal the existence of radio waves. And mathematics even has the power to open our eyes to new and unexpected regularities - the secret structure of a cloud or the hidden rhythms of the weather. There are patterns in the world that we are now seeing for the first time - patterns at the boundaries of science, yet patterns so simple that anyone can see them once they know where to look.

Pages: 208, Year of Publication: 0301, Dimensions: 12.8x12.8cm