Math Trek: Adventures in the Math Zone There s a new amusement park in town. Come on in and find out all the exciting ways you can have fun with math in everyday life. Wander through the fractal forest, take a ride on the Mobius-strip roller coaster, and get dizzy learning about how math makes the Tilt-A-Whirl possible. The more activities you try, the more you'll learn how cool it can be to see the world through the eyes of a mathematician. Once you have sampled some of the interesting and unique projects in Math Trek , from untangling unknots to winning games with weird diceto figuring out secret codes, you ll see that every trip to the Math Zone is an exciting adventure! Grade 5-9-This is not your typical math puzzle book. Instead of calculator puzzles or multiplication tricks, it is filled with sections on knots and unknots, maps, M?bius roller coasters, secret binary codes, billiards, chaos theory, and more. The layout is clear and precise, though some of the explanations are a bit complicated. Most of the black-and-white cartoons and diagrams complement the text nicely, although some of the drawings are a little rough. Each chapter visits a different site at an amusement park called the MathZone. For each trek, readers are asked to solve problems and try out puzzles on their own. Solutions are provided at the end. This is a fun book that goes beyond sharpening skills, allowing readers to apply mathematics to everyday life. Although it covers similar ground, it would work well with Christy Maganzini's Cool Math (Price Stern Sloan, 1997). While Math Trek is perfect for youngsters who want to experiment and learn more on their own, teachers may want to use some of the activities to supplement their curriculum. Maren Ostergard, Bellevue Regional Library, WA Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. Chapters such as "Tilt-A-Whirl Madness" and "The Fractal Pond Race" take readers on an amusing and enlightening amusement park adventure through advanced concepts such as mathematical chaos, fractals and topology. The language, problems and examples are all accessible and age appropriate, and the glossary, recommended reading and web site link enhance this lively learning experience. A 2000 Parents' Choice® Recommended winner. Reviewed by Parents' Choice® 2000 -- From Parents' Choice® Take the ride of your life in the MathZone! There's a new amusement park in town. Come on in–and find out all the exciting ways you can have fun with math in everyday life. Wander through the fractal forest, take a ride on the Möbius-strip roller coaster, and get dizzy learning about how math makes the Tilt-A-Whirl possible. The more activities you try, the more you'll learn how cool it can be to see the world through the eyes of a mathematician. Once you've sampled some of the interesting and unique projects in Math Trek , from untangling unknots to winning games with weird dice to figuring out secret codes, you'll see that every trip to the MathZone is an exciting adventure! Take the ride of your life in the MathZone! There's a new amusement park in town. Come on in and find out all the exciting ways you can have fun with math in everyday life. Wander through the fractal forest, take a ride on the Möbius-strip roller coaster, and get dizzy learning about how math makes the Tilt-A-Whirl possible. The more activities you try, the more you'll learn how cool it can be to see the world through the eyes of a mathematician. Once you've sampled some of the interesting and unique projects in Math Trek , from untangling unknots to winning games with weird dice to figuring out secret codes, you'll see that every trip to the MathZone is an exciting adventure! IVARS PETERSON is an award-winning mathematics writer known for his popular books The Jungles of Randomness, The Mathematical Tourist, and Islands of Truth. He also writes about mathematics for Science News and Muse magazines. NANCY HENDERSON is a freelance writer and editor whose articles have appeared in New Scientist, Science and Children, U.S. News & World Report, the Washington Post, and many other publications. Math Trek Adventures in the Math Zone By Ivars Peterson Nancy Henderson Jossey-Bass Copyright © 2000 Ivars Peterson and Nancy Henderson All right reserved. ISBN: 978-0-471-31570-4 Contents Preface........................................vii1 Do Knot Enter................................12 The MapZone..................................93 The Crazy Roller Coaster.....................195 Mersenne's Fun House.........................297 The Fractal Pond Race........................3911 Tilt-A-Whirl Madness........................5313 Luck on the Boredwalk.......................6317 The Code-Locked Door........................7319 The Wild Game Hall..........................8123 Way Out!....................................91Answers........................................99Glossary.......................................107Further Reading