Snezana Lawrence

Gersonides (1288–1344), who is central to this chapter, lived in Orange, a small town in Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region which today finds itself part of France. He wrote exclusively in Hebrew, and even now most of his scientific work hasn’t been translated to modern European languages. Although his major contributions to theology and Judaism were often seen as contrary to the majority views, and sometimes even undesirable, his mathematical works remained largely unknown, partially because he wrote exclusively in Hebrew. In this regard we will investigate briefly his world-view, his epistemological method, and finally mention some of his contributions to mathematics. Gersonides’ opus is situated within the intersections of the original language in which he wrote and our changing interpretations of this work as well as between his philosophical theology and mathematics.

A New Year's Present from a Mathematician is an exciting book dedicated to two questions: What is it that mathematicians do? And who gets to be called a 'mathematician' and why? This book seeks to answer these questions through a series of stories ranging from the beginning of modern mathematics through to the 20th century, but not in a usual, chronological manner. The author weaves her story around major questions concerning nature of mathematics, and links mathematicians by the substance of their ideas and the historical and personal context in which they were developed. Ideal for anyone with an interest in mathematics, this book gives a powerful insight into mathematical concepts in an easy-to-read-and-digest manner, without trivializing their nature. The attention given to engaging examples, framed within a poetic narrative structure, means that this book can be enjoyed by almost anyone, regardless of their level of mathematical education.

To open a newspaper or turn on the television it would appear that science and religion are polar opposites - mutually exclusive bedfellows competing for hearts and minds. There is little indication of the rich interaction between religion and science throughout history, much of which continues today. From ancient to modern times, mathematicians have played a key role in this interaction. This is a book on the relationship between mathematics and religious beliefs. It aims to show that, throughout scientific history, mathematics has been used to make sense of the 'big' questions of life, and that religious beliefs sometimes drove mathematicians to mathematics to help them make sense of the world. Containing contributions from a wide array of scholars in the fields of philosophy, history of science and history of mathematics, this book shows that the intersection between mathematics and theism is rich in both culture and character. Chapters cover a fascinating range of topics including the Sect of the Pythagoreans, Newton's views on the apocalypse, Charles Dodgson's Anglican faith and Gödel's proof of the existence of God.