 | |
| Original title | Anschauliche Geometrie |
|---|---|
| Translator | Paul Neményi |
| Publisher | Chelsea Publishing (American Mathematical Society) |
Publication date | 1952 |
| Pages | 357 |
| ISBN | 9780821819982 |
| OCLC | 542459 |
Geometry and the Imagination is the English translation of the 1932 book Anschauliche Geometrie by David Hilbert and Stefan Cohn-Vossen.[1]
The book was based on a series of lectures Hilbert made in the winter of 1920–21. The book is an attempt to present some then-current mathematical thought to "contribute to a more just appreciation of mathematics by a wider range of people than just the specialists."[2] It differentiates between two tendencies in mathematics and any other scientific research: on the one hand, toward abstraction and logical relations, correlating the subject matter in a systematic and orderly manner, and on the other hand an intuitive approach, which moves toward a more immediate grasp of and a "live rapport" with the same material. Further he asserts that intuitive understanding actually plays a major role for the researcher as well as anyone who wishes to study and appreciate Geometry.[3]
- ^ Hilbert, David; Cohn-Vossen, Stefan (1999). Geometry and the imagination (2nd ed.). Providence, R.I.: AMS Chelsea Pub. ISBN 9780821819982. OCLC 41256151.
- ^ Hilbert, page iv
- ^ Hilbert, page iii