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An imaginary tale

Paul J. Nahin

1998257 pagesabout 4–6 hours
1998
first published
  • 1998Princeton University Press · 257 pages · ENGISBN 9780691027951
  • 2009Princeton University Press · 267 pages · ENGISBN 9781282458420
  • 2010Princeton University PressISBN 9780691146003
  • 2010Princeton University Press · 267 pages · ENGISBN 9781282569225
  • 2010Princeton University Press · 296 pages · ENGISBN 9781400833894
  • 2016Princeton University Press · 296 pages · ENGISBN 9780691169248
  • 2007Princeton University Press · 288 pages · ENGISBN 9780691127989

In An Imaginary Tale, Paul Nahin tells the 2000-year-old history of one of mathematics' most elusive numbers, the square root of minus one, also known as i, re-creating the baffling mathematical problems that conjured it up and the colorful characters who tried to solve them. Addressing readers with both a general and scholarly interest in mathematics, Nahin weaves into this narrative entertaining historical facts, mathematical discussions, and the application of complex numbers and functions to important problems.

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