Math Genius

For thousands of years mathematicians solved progressively more difficult algebraic equations, until they encountered the quintic equation, which resisted solution for three centuries. Working independently, two prodigies ultimately proved that the quintic cannot be solved by a simple formula. The first popular account of the mathematics of symmetry and order, The Equation That Couldn't Be Solved is told not through abstract formulas but in a beautifully written and dramatic account of the lives and work of some of the greatest and most intriguing mathematicians in history.

In 2006, an oddball group of bankers, traders and brokers from some of the world's largest financial institutions made a startling realization: Libor - the London interbank offered rate, which determines the interest rates on trillions in loans worldwide - was set daily by a small group of easily manipulated functionaries, and that they could reap huge profits by nudging it to suit their trading portfolios.

Learn how to tackle tricky maths problems with nothing but the back of an envelope, a pencil and some good old-fashioned brain power. Join Rob Eastaway as he takes an entertaining look at how to figure without a calculator. Packed with amusing anecdotes, quizzes, and handy calculation tips for every situation, Maths on the Back of an Envelope is an invaluable introduction to the art of estimation and a welcome reminder that sometimes our own brain is the best tool we have to deal with numbers.

To be a great poker player you need to stay calm and focused on whatever is happening. Regardless of whether you are playing online or in person, cash poker or tournament poker, it's vitally important to avoid losing control of your emotions. When a player gives in to their emotions they start playing irrationally; this is a state of mind known in the world of poker as ‘"tilt". Tilt describes the state of mind a poker player slides into when their emotions take over their decision-making process and they begin playing based on their feelings rather than on their strategy.

From Leonardo Da Vinci to John Dee and Comenius, from George Eliot to Oliver Sacks and Susan Sontag, polymaths have moved the frontiers of knowledge in countless ways. But history can be unkind to scholars with such encyclopaedic interests. All too often these individuals are remembered for just one part of their valuable achievements. In this engaging, erudite account, renowned cultural historian Peter Burke argues for a more rounded view.

Math-genius mercenary Cas Russell has stopped a shadow organization from brainwashing the world and discovered her past was deliberately erased and her superhuman abilities deliberately created. And that's just the start: When a demolitions expert targets Cas and her friends, and the hidden conspiracy behind Cas' past starts to reappear, the past, present, and future collide in a race to save one of her dearest friends.

Jalen DeLuca's unique ability to predict pitches helped him save the career of Yankees star Second Baseman James “JY” Yager, but with JY sidelined with an injury, Jalen’s focusing on his own on-field efforts. However, the media is still interested in the “Calamari Kid”, and Jalen begins to get a little full of himself. Now, Daniel and Cat are starting to feel left out and kind of angry. Maybe all this baseball genius stuff isn’t as great as it’s cracked up to be.

Eva Walker is a 17-year-old math genius. And if that doesn't do wonders for her popularity, there's another thing that makes it even worse: When she touches another person or anything that belongs to them - from clothes to textbooks to cell phones - she sees a vision of their emotions. She can read a person's fears and anxieties, their secrets and loves...and what they have yet to learn about calculus. This is helpful for her work as a math tutor, but it means she can never get close to people. Eva avoids touching anyone and everyone.

A mango...is just one thing. But if I chop it in two, then chop the half in two, and keep on chopping, I get more and more bits, on and on, endlessly, to an infinity I could never ever reach. In 1887 in India, a boy named Ramanujan is born with a passion for numbers. He sees numbers in the squares of light pricking his thatched roof and in the beasts dancing on the temple tower. He writes mathematics with his finger in the sand, across the pages of his notebooks, and with chalk on the temple floor.

Patterns of Perception: Preferred Pathways to Genius deals with an important topic both for science and spirituality: direct perception. How do humans perceive reality? Is there something like a universal reality, one that is valid for all of us, or is reality always personal? And how does the memory surface work? Is our school system the right one, or do we have to implement fundamental changes so as to mold our school system after the way our brain learns? Would that not be the most intelligent way of doing it?