symmetry

Symmetry
$19.95
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. It offers very deep insights on the use and implications of symmetry, not only in art, but in physics, chemistry, and other sciences. It also provides a comprehensive mathematical treatment at an accessible level. The reason I did not give it a full 5 stars is that sometimes the mathematical steps were not fully spelled out, or the explanation was vague, so a few passages left me wondering what he really means. More examples, figures, and details would have helped. Still, it was an exciting read - for the first time I really understood the theory of relativity and what it means in terms of symmetry. The author also impresses with his breadth of knowledge, being equally comfortable with the latest mathematical methods as he is with historical development of the field, all the way back to the Egyptians and Greeks. The book is fairly slim and I read it fast, yet learned a lot.

Symmetry Rules: How Science and Nature Are Founded on Symmetry (The Frontiers Collection)
$59.95
When we use science to describe and understand the world around us, we are in essence grasping nature through symmetry. In fact, modern theoretical physics suggests that symmetry is a, if not the, foundational principle of nature. Emphasizing the concepts, this book leads the reader coherently and comprehensively into the fertile field of symmetry and its applications. Among the most important applications considered are the fundamental forces of nature and the Universe. It is shown that the Universe cannot possess exact symmetry, which is a principle of fundamental significance. Curie's principle - which states that the symmetry of the effect is at least that of the cause - features prominently. An introduction to group theory, the mathematical language of symmetry, is included. This book will convince all interested readers of the importance of symmetry in science. Furthermore, it will serve as valuable background reading for all students in the physical sciences.

Symmetry: The Ordering Principle (Wooden Books)
$12.00
A very small book, only the size of a small paperback. As a result all the illustrations reproduce badly and lack detail. information is also very general and feels like a summary.

Symmetry and the Monster: The Story of One of the Greatest Quests of Mathematics
$19.95
I bought this book expecting an intermediate level treatment of groups. With intermediate, I'm not talking about formal proofs or anything, but at least the definition. When I opened the book for the first time, all I saw was blocks of text everywhere. I thought.. isn't this a maths book? Where is the math? In fact, the author makes an unbelievable effort to keep the book as light as possible, maybe to appeal to a wider audience.

While I must admit the author did very well in explaining the concepts, and in writing an entertaining historical account of the classification of groups, when you finish reading this book, your understanding about the mathematics groups is unfortunately not much better than at the beginning. Everything, even the most simple things, seem to be beyond the scope of this book, so you end up knowing a lot about the history of 19th and 20th century algebra, but not much about groups. I must say, however, that the book is really entertaning from this point of view.