EVERY American schoolkid knows Benjamin Franklin as a founding father of the United States, as well as an author, printer, scientist and diplomat. There is hardly a discipline on which Franklin did not stamp his mark during the 18th century. But the role that mathematics played in his life has been overlooked, argues Paul Pasles. Franklin, for instance, was fascinated with magic squares, and this book provides plenty of background to help the reader admire his interest. He was not a leading mathematician, but given his status it is perhaps inevitable that every detail of his existence is destined to be scrutinised.
Benjamin Franklin鈥檚 Numbers
Princeton University Press
