* Eugenia Cheng - On Mathematics and Category Theory (6 books)
EUGENIA LOH-GENE CHENG is a British mathematician and concert pianist. Her mathematical interests include higher category theory, and as a pianist she specialises in lieder and art song. She is also passionate about explaining mathematics to non-mathematicians to rid the world of math phobia, often using entertaining analogies with food and baking. Cheng is a scientist-in-residence at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
Cheng's research interests are in category theory, which she has written about for a general audience by using analogies from baking. In HOW TO BAKE P I (2015), each chapter begins with a recipe for a dessert, to illustrate the commonalities in the methods and principles of mathematics and cooking. Cheng has also written a number of papers with similar themes, such as "On the Perfect Quantity of Cream for a Scone" (2013) and "On the Perfect Size for a Pizza" (2013), both among the papers included here.
Among her other books are BEYOND INFINITY: AN EXPEDITION TO THE OUTER LIMITS OF MATHEMATICS (2017), which explains set theory for lay audiences using analogies and anecdotes, including Cantor's diagonal argument and Zeno's paradoxes. It was shortlisted for the 2017 Insight Investment Science Book Prize under the Royal Society Prizes for Science Books.
THE ART OF LOGIC IN AN ILLOGICAL WORLD (2018) explores arguments on real-world topics like same-sex marriage, white privilege, and police brutality in the United States using methods from logic, including explanations of Russell's paradox and Euclid's axioms on the way.
Her most recent book, IS MATHS REAL? (2023), is a repudiation of the rigid ways we're taught to do math, and a celebration of the true, curious spirit of the discipline. Cheng demonstrates why people who ask simple questions like "Why does 1 + 1 = 2?" are at the very heart of the search for mathematical truth.
The following books are in ePub and/or PDF format as noted:
* The Art of Logic in an Illogical World (Basic Books, 2018) – ePub
* Beyond Infinity: An Expedition to the Outer Limits of Mathematics (Basic Books, 2017) – ePub
* Cakes, Custard and Category Theory: Easy Recipes for Understanding Complex Maths (Profile, 2015) – ePub
* How to Bake Pi: An Edible Exploration of the Mathematics of Mathematics (Basic Books, 2015) – ePub + PDF
* Is Maths Real?: How Simple Questions Lead Us to Mathematics’ Deepest Truths (Profile, 2023) – ePub
* The Joy of Abstraction: An Exploration of Math, Category Theory, and Life (Cambridge, 2023) – PDF
* x + y: A Mathematician's Manifesto for Rethinking Gender (Basic Books, 2020) – ePub
