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Clouds Are Not Spheres: A Portrait of Benoît Mandelbrot, The Founding Father of Fractal Geometry
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About Clouds Are Not Spheres: A Portrait Of Benoît
Product Description The time is right, following Benoît Mandelbrot's death in 2010, to publish this landmark book about the life and work of this maverick math genius. This compact book celebrates the life and achievements of Benoît Mandelbrot with the ideas of fractals presented in a way that can be understood by the interested lay-person. Mathematics is largely avoided. Instead, Mandelbrot's ideas and insights are described using a combination of intuition and pictures. The early part of the book is largely biographical, but it portrays well how Mandelbrot's life and ideas developed and led to the fractal notions that are surveyed in the latter parts of the book. Readership: Aimed at a general inquisitively-minded readership. It will appeal to those seeking to understand fractal geometry in particular and mathematics in general. The book will appeal to readers of all ages. It will not be technically difficult or demand a deep understanding of mathematics. It will find a wide readership as a popular science book as well as appealing to academics, who like to read about the lives, struggles and achievements of their fellow scientists. The book is written for a very broad audience with minimal scientific or mathematical background. It may interest those who have come across fractals or the Mandelbrot set in some context and who want to find out more about what fractals are and about their progenitor. Review "There's much to recommend in this text. Nigel's collection of quotations taken from interviews he conducted provide valuable insights, many unavailable in print in any other place. Also, Nigel has assembled nice examples in chapters 7 and 8, some are familiar, some are less well-known, some will surprise readers. His overall picture is a useful addition to the literature about one of the most creative scientists of the 20th century. I look forward to seeing it in print." -- Michael Frame, Yale University "With its stunning pictures and lucid text, Clouds Are Not Spheres celebrates the works and the life of this remarkable man." -- Emeritus Professor Ian Stewart, University of Warwick "It is a fine popular biography that will appeal to a far wider audience than any other book which focuses on Mandelbrot." -- Nathan Cohen, Fractal Antenna Systems, Inc. "I read Nigel's Clouds Are Not Spheres and enjoyed it very much … Benoît influenced a new generation of mathematicians and scientists for whom fractals are an integral part of their knowledge, vision, applications and enjoyment … I recommend this publication." -- Michael Shlesinger, Office of Naval Research, Arlington, USA "The book is clearly written and easy to read and the illustrations are well–chosen and helpful. The reader will come away with a feeling for the inspirational nature of Mandelbrot's work as well as the opposition from some quarters that he had to encounter in getting his ideas accepted." -- Kenneth Falconer, University of St Andrews, UK "The book is well-illustrated, earlier chapters with monochrome portraits of Mandelbrot, his family and those who influenced him, and later ones with striking colour pictures not only of the Mandelbrot set and other computer generated fractals, but also of 'real' fractals including cloud formations and rural and mountain scenes … This celebration of Mandelbrot's scientific life is largely based on interviews that the author had with him when making films on his work … A challenge for historians of mathematics and science in coming years will be to produce a more broadly contextual and rounded account of the advent of fractals." -- London Math Society "This is a popular book about the Mandelbrot's life and his results on fractals, addresed to a general audience … Mathematicians will still find this book very interesting. The book is wonderfully illustrated … The book is written in a lively and inviting style. Ian Stewart writes, 'With its stunning pictures and lucid text, Clouds are not spheres celebrates the works
