The Music of the Primes: Why an unsolved problem in mathematics matters. Marcus Sautoy du

      

      The Music of the

      Primes Why an Unsolved Problem in Mathematics Matters

       Marcus du Sautoy

       Copyright

      Fourth Estate

      An imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd. 1 London Bridge Street London SE1 9GF

       www.harpercollins.co.uk

      This edition published by Harper Perennial 2004

      First published by Fourth Estate 2003

      Copyright © Marcus du Sautoy 2003

      PS section copyright © Josh Lacey 2004

      PS™ is a trademark of HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd.

      Marcus du Sautoy asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work

      A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

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      Source ISBN: 9781841155807

      Ebook Edition © MAY 2012 ISBN: 9780007375875

      Version: 2017-05-03

       Praise

      From the reviews of The Music of the Primes:

      ‘A gripping, entertaining and thought-provoking book. Du Sautoy is certainly a brilliant storyteller and introduces us to some great personalities … Even if you don’t understand the maths, this is still a fascinating book. And if you do understand some of it, it will have you running for your calculator as you try to work out some of the riddles along the way’

       Independent on Sunday

      ‘Delightfully entertaining … [Du Sautoy] has been successful in setting up a compelling dramatis personae of mathematicians, with every character vividly illuminated with anecdotes and felicitous comment’

       Guardian

      ‘Du Sautoy … laces the ideas with history, anecdote and personalia – an entertaining mix that renders an austere subject palatable … Even those with a mathematical allergy can enjoy du Sautoy’s depictions of his cast of characters’

       The Times

      ‘The subject is daunting, but du Sautoy writes with admirable clarity and verve’

       Daily Mail

      ‘An engaging and accessible history of work on prime numbers and the Riemann hypothesis’

       Economist

      ‘Entertaining … looks certain to be a great success’

       Nature

       Dedication

      For the memory of

      Yonathan du Sautoy October 21, 2000

      Contents

       Cover

       Title Page

Copyright

Praise

Dedication

1 Who Wants To Be a Millionaire?

2 The Atoms of Arithmetic

3 Riemann’s Imaginary Mathematical Looking-Glass

       4 The Riemann Hypothesis: From Random Primes to Orderly Zeros

       5 The Mathematical Relay Race: Realising Riemann’s Revolution

       6 Ramanujan, the Mathematical Mystic

       7 Mathematical Exodus: From Göttingen to Princeton

       8 Machines of the Mind

       9 The Computer Age: From the Mind to the Desktop

       10 Cracking Numbers and Codes

       11 From Orderly Zeros to Quantum Chaos

       12 The Missing Piece of the Jigsaw

       Keep Reading

       Acknowledgements

       Further Reading

       Illustration and Text Credits

       Index

       P.S.

       About the Author

       Portrait of Marcus du Sautoy

       Snapshot