Around the world in eighty games from tarot to tic-tac-toe, Catan to Chutes and Ladders, a mathematician unlocks the secrets of the world's greatest games

"Where should you move first in Connect 4? What is the best property in Monopoly? And how can pi help you win rock paper scissors? Spanning millennia, oceans and continents, countries and cultures, Around the World in Eighty Games gleefully explores how mathematics and games have always been deeply...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Du Sautoy, Marcus (Author)
Format: Books Print Book
Language:English
Published: New York : Basic Books, 2025.
Edition:First trade paperback edition.
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Summary:"Where should you move first in Connect 4? What is the best property in Monopoly? And how can pi help you win rock paper scissors? Spanning millennia, oceans and continents, countries and cultures, Around the World in Eighty Games gleefully explores how mathematics and games have always been deeply intertwined. Renowned mathematician Marcus du Sautoy investigates how games provided the first opportunities for deep mathematical insight into the world, how understanding math can help us play games better, and how both math and games are integral to human psychology and culture. For as long as there have been people, there have been games, and for nearly as long, we have been exploring and discovering mathematics. A grand adventure, Around the World in Eighty Games teaches us not just how games are won, but how they, and their math, shape who we are."--Page [4] of cover.
Physical Description:x, 369 pages : illustrations, maps ; 21 cm
Bibliography:Includes bibliographical references (pages 349-354) and index.
ISBN:9781541606333
1541606337
Author Notes:Marcus du Sautoy is Simonyi Professor for the Public Understanding of Science and professor of mathematics at the University of Oxford. He is author of eight books and two plays. Du Sautoy is a Fellow of the Royal Society and recipient of many awards, including the Berwick Prize and an OBE. He lives in London.