Nonstandard Notebook

Tim Chartier is the Joseph R. Morton Professor of Mathematics and Computer Science at Davidson College. His books include Math Bytes: Google Bombs, Chocolate-Covered Pi, and Other Cool Bits in Computing and Get in the Game: An Interactive Introduction to Sports Analytics, the latter also published by the University of Chicago Press. Amy Langville is professor of mathematics at the College of Charleston. Her books include Google’s PageRank and Beyond: The Science of Search Engine Rankings, Who’s #1: The Science of Rating and Ranking, and the Deconstruct Calculus Series. She is also a frequent consultant on applied mathematics projects.

• ForewordIntroduction1 Lines: the wisps of structure2 Parabolas: residues of motion3 Polygons: the molecules of shape4 Circles: the ripples of distance5 Waves: the rhythms of nature6 Limits: tales of striving7 Rotation: dizzying symmetry8 Scaling: the rhyme of large and small9 Polar: the world of the compass rose10 Pathways: parametric footprints11 Randomness: serendipity through chaos12 Third Dimension: the paradox of paperClosing Lines

"Writing in a notebook, we are taught to follow the rules—to let the faint parallel lines guide the pen across the page. But what if the rules begin to tilt or curl, converge or diverge, twist themselves into loops or spirals? This is the unsettling premise of Chartier and Langville’s Nonstandard Notebook: Mathematically Ruled Pages for Unruly Thoughts. . . . The notebook is handsome and well-made. The size (half of a letter sheet) is convenient for those who want to take notes in class or keep a journal. However, I do wonder how many owners of the Nonstandard Notebook will find the unruly rules too intriguing to scribble over."