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Martin Gardner
Born October 21, 1914 (1914-10-21) (age 93)
Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA
Known for Puzzles, author

Martin Gardner (b. Events 1512 - Martin Luther joins the theological faculty of the University of Wittenberg. Year 1914 ( MCMXIV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Oklahoma ( is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the October 21, 1914, Tulsa, Oklahoma) is a popular American mathematics and science writer specializing in recreational mathematics, but with interests encompassing magic (conjuring), pseudoscience, literature (especially Lewis Carroll), philosophy, and religion. Events 1512 - Martin Luther joins the theological faculty of the University of Wittenberg. Year 1914 ( MCMXIV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Recreational mathematics is an umbrella term referring to Mathematical puzzles and Mathematical games. Pseudoscience is defined as a body of knowledge methodology belief or practice that is claimed to be Scientific or made to appear scientific but does not adhere to the Literature is the Art of written works Literally translated the word means "acquaintance with letters" (from Latin littera letter Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (ˈdɒdsən (27 January 1832 &ndash 14 January 1898 better known by the Pen name Lewis Carroll (/ˈkærəl/ was an English Philosophy is the study of general problems concerning matters such as existence knowledge truth beauty justice validity mind and language A religion is a set of Tenets and practices often centered upon specific Supernatural and moral claims about Reality, the Cosmos He wrote the "Mathematical Games" column in Scientific American from 1956 to 1981 and has published over 70 books. This article is about using Mathematics to study the inner-workings of Multiplayer games which on the surface may not appear mathematical at all Scientific American is a Popular science magazine, published (first weekly and later monthly since August 28, 1845, making it

Contents

Biography

Martin Gardner grew up in and around Tulsa, Oklahoma. During World War II, he served for several years in the U. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including S. Navy as a yeoman. Yeoman is noun used to indicate a variety of positions or Social classes In the 16th century a yeoman was also a Farmer of middling social status who owned While his primary duty was signaling by means of flags and lights, demanding superb eyesight, he was also secretary to the ship's captain and other officers. So early on he was a professional writer.

After the war, Gardner attended college at the University of Chicago and earned a bachelor's degree in philosophy there. The University of Chicago is a Private university located principally in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago. He also attended graduate school at the University of Chicago, but he did not earn a master's degree there. The rest of his education he achieved independently through his wide reading and library research.

For many decades, Gardner, his wife Charlotte, and their two sons lived in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York, where he earned his living as an independent author, publishing books with several different publishers, and also publishing hundreds of magazine articles in various magazines. Hastings-on-Hudson is a village in Westchester County New York, United States. Either by choice or a happy coincidence, he lived on Euclid Avenue. Euclid ( Greek:.) fl 300 BC also known as Euclid of Alexandria, is often referred to as the Father of Geometry In 1979, he and his wife semi-retired and moved to Hendersonville, North Carolina where they lived in relative seclusion. Hendersonville is a city in Henderson County, North Carolina, USA, 22 miles (35 km southeast of Asheville. He and his wife had a long and happy marriage until her death in 2000.

Recreational mathematics

Martin Gardner more or less single-handedly sustained and nurtured interest in recreational mathematics in the U. S. for a large part of the 20th century. He is best known for his decades-long efforts in popular mathematics and science journalism, particularly through his "Mathematical Games" column in Scientific American.

The "Mathematical Games" column ran from 1956 to 1981 and introduced many subjects to a wider audience, including:

In 1981, on Gardner's retirement, the column was replaced by Douglas Hofstadter's "Metamagical Themas", a name that is an anagram of "Mathematical Games". In Geometry, flexagons are flat models made from folded strips of paper that can be folded or flexed, to reveal a number of hidden faces John Horton Conway (born December 26, 1937, Liverpool, England) is a prolific mathematician active in the theory of finite groups "Conway game" can refer to games as defined by Surreal numbers which Conway also developed In Recreational mathematics, a polyomino is a Polyform with the square as its base form Soma-cube-assembledjpg|thumb|none|The same puzzle assembled into a cube]]The Soma cube is a solid dissection puzzle invented by A board game is a Game in which counters or pieces that are placed on removed from or moved across a "board" (a premarked surface usually specific to that game Hex is a Board game played on a hexagonal grid, theoretically of any size and several possible shapes but traditionally as an 11x11 rhombus Piet Hein ( December 16, 1905 &ndash April 17, 1996) was a Danish Scientist, Mathematician, Inventor, Tangram ( is a Dissection puzzle. It consists of seven pieces called tans, which fit together to form a shape of some sort A Penrose tiling is a nonperiodic tiling generated by an aperiodic set of Prototiles named after Roger Penrose, who investigated these sets Cryptanalysis (from the Greek kryptós, "hidden" and analýein, "to loosen" or "to untie" is the study of methods for Public-key cryptography, also known as asymmetric cryptography, is a form of Cryptography in which the key used to encrypt a message differs from the key In Mathematics, the RSA numbers are a set of large Semiprimes (numbers with exactly two Prime factors that are part of the RSA Factoring Challenge Maurits Cornelis Escher (17 June 1898 – 27 March 1972 usually referred to as M A fractal is generally "a rough or fragmented geometric shape that can be split into parts each of which is (at least approximately a reduced-size copy of the whole" Douglas Richard Hofstadter (born February 15 1945 in New York New York) is an American academic whose research focuses on consciousness thinking and creativity Metamagical Themas is an eclectic collection of articles written for Scientific American during the early 1980s by Douglas Hofstadter, and published An anagram ( Greek anagramma 'letters written anew' passive participle of ana- 'again' + gramma 'letter' is a type of Word play

Gardner also wrote a "puzzle" story column for (Isaac) Asimov's Science Fiction magazine for a while in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Asimov's Science Fiction (ISSN 1065-2698 is an American Science fiction magazine which publishes Science fiction and Fantasy and

Pseudoscience

Gardner's uncompromising attitude toward pseudoscience has made him one of the world's foremost anti-pseudoscience polemicists of the last half of the twentieth century. Pseudoscience is defined as a body of knowledge methodology belief or practice that is claimed to be Scientific or made to appear scientific but does not adhere to the The twentieth century of the Common Era began on His book Fads and Fallacies in the Name of Science (1952, revised 1957) is a classic and seminal work of the skeptical movement. Fads and Fallacies in the Name of Science was Martin Gardner 's second book and has become a classic in the literature of entertaining Scientific skepticism Scientific skepticism or rational skepticism ( also spelled scepticism) sometimes referred to as skeptical inquiry, is a scientific or practical It explored myriad dubious outlooks and projects including Fletcherism, creationism, organic farming, Charles Fort, Rudolf Steiner, Dianetics, unidentified flying objects, dowsing, extra-sensory perception, the Bates method and psychokinesis. Horace Fletcher (1849–1919 was an American health- food faddist of the Victorian era who earned the nickname "The Great Masticator" by "Creationism" can also refer to Creation myths in general or to a concept about the origin of the soul. Organic farming is a form of agriculture that relies on Crop rotation, Green manure, Compost, Biological pest control, and mechanical Cultivation Charles Hoy Fort ( 6 August, 1874 &ndash 3 May, 1932) was a Dutch-American writer and researcher into anomalous phenomena Rudolf Steiner ( 25 February 1861 – 30 March 1925) was an Austrian philosopher literary scholar educator artist playwright Dianetics is a set of ideas and practices regarding the relationship between the spirit mind and body that were developed by L Dowsing, sometimes called doodlebugging, divining or water witching, is a practice whereby dowsers attempt to locate hidden Water wells Extrasensory perception (ESP is the apparent ability to acquire information by Paranormal means independent of any known physical Senses or deduction from previous The Bates method for "better eyesight" was developed by eye-care physician William Horatio Bates, M The term psychokinesis (from the Greek ψυχή, "psyche" meaning mind soul heart or breath; and κίνησις, "kinesis" This book and his subsequent efforts (Science: Good, Bad and Bogus, 1981; Order and Surprise, 1983, etc) earned him a wealth of detractors and antagonists in the field of "fringe science" with many of whom he kept up running dialogs (both public and private) for decades.

In 1976, he was a founding member of the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP), and he wrote a column called "Notes of a Fringe Watcher" (originally "Notes of a Psi-Watcher") from 1983 to 2002 for that organization's periodical Skeptical Inquirer. The Committee for Skeptical Inquiry ( CSI) formerly known as the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal ( CSICOP) is a The Skeptical Inquirer is a bimonthly American Magazine published by the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSI with the subtitle These have been collected in five books: New Age: Notes of a Fringe Watcher (1988), On the Wild Side (1992), Weird Water and Fuzzy Logic (1996), Did Adam and Eve Have Navels (2000), and Are Universes Thicker than Blackberries (2003). Unusually for a senior CSICOP fellow and prominent skeptic of the paranormal, Gardner is a theist and professes belief in God, although he is critical of organized religion. Theism, in its most inclusive usage is the belief in at least one Deity. God is the principal or sole Deity in Religions and other belief systems that worship one deity. Gardner has been quoted as saying that he regards parapsychology and other research into the paranormal as tantamount to "tempting God" and seeking "signs and wonders". He has however said that he feels it might be possible that prayers may be genuinely answered. They may minutely effect mathematical probilities.

Religious and philosophical interests

Gardner has had an abiding fascination in religious belief. He has written repeatedly about what public figures such as Robert Maynard Hutchins, Mortimer Adler, and William F. Buckley, Jr. believed and whether their beliefs were logically consistent. Robert Maynard Hutchins ( January 17, 1899, Brooklyn New York – May 17, 1977, Santa Barbara California) husband of Mortimer Jerome Adler ( December 28, 1902 &ndash June 28, 2001) was an American Aristotelian philosopher William Frank Buckley Jr ( November 24 1925  – February 27 2008) was an American Author and conservative In some cases, he has attacked prominent religious figures such as Mary Baker Eddy on the grounds that their claims are unsupportable. Mary Baker Eddy (born Mary Morse Baker July 16, 1821 &ndash December 3, 1910) was the founder of the Christian Science His semi-autobiographical novel The Flight of Peter Fromm depicts a traditionally Protestant Christian man struggling with his faith, examining 20th century scholarship and intellectual movements and ultimately rejecting Christianity while remaining a theist. He describes his own belief as philosophical theism inspired by the theology of the philosopher Miguel de Unamuno. Theism, in its most inclusive usage is the belief in at least one Deity. Miguel de Unamuno y Jugo ( September 29, 1864 &ndash December 31, 1936) was an Essayist Novelist poet, playwright While critical of organized religions, Gardner believes in God, claiming that this belief cannot be confirmed or disconfirmed by reason. At the same time, he is skeptical of claims that God has communicated with human beings through spoken or telepathic revelation or through miracles in the natural world. Revelation is the act of revealing or disclosing (see etymology or in the theological perception making something obvious and clearly understood through active or passive communication A miracle is an event believed to be caused by interposition of Divine intervention by a Supernatural being in the Universe by which the ordinary operation

Gardner's philosophy may be summarized as follows: There is nothing supernatural, and nothing in human reason or visible in the world to compel people to believe in God. The term supernatural or supranatural ( Latin: super, supra "above" + natura "nature" pertains to entities events God is the principal or sole Deity in Religions and other belief systems that worship one deity. The mystery of existence is enchanting, but a belief in The Old One comes from faith without evidence. In common usage existence is the world of which we are aware through our senses but in Philosophy the word has a more specialized meaning and is often contrasted with Faith is a Belief in the trustworthiness of an Idea. Formal usage of the word "faith" is usually reserved for concepts of Religion, as in Evidence in its broadest sense includes anything that is used to determine or demonstrate the Truth of an assertion However, with faith and prayer people can find greater happiness than without. Prayer is the act of attempting to communicate with a Deity or spirit If there is an afterlife, the loving Old One is real. AfterLife is a film drama set in Scotland directed by Alison Peebles made in 2003 about an ambitious Scottish journalist forced to choose between "[To an atheist] the universe is the most exquisite masterpiece ever constructed by nobody", from G. K. Chesterton, is one of Gardner's favorite quotes. Masterpiece (or chef d'œuvre) refers to any Work of art that is considered extraordinary Gilbert Keith Chesterton (29 May 1874 – 14 June 1936 was an influential English writer of the early 20th century

Gardner has said that he suspects that the fundamental nature of human consciousness may not be knowable or discoverable, unless perhaps a physics more profound than ("underlying") quantum mechanics is some day developed. Consciousness has been defined loosely as a constellation of attributes of Mind such as Subjectivity, Self-awareness, Sentience, and the Quantum mechanics is the study of mechanical systems whose dimensions are close to the Atomic scale such as Molecules Atoms Electrons In this regard, he says, he is an adherent of the "New Mysterianism". This article is about a response to the mind-body problem For a general article on the limits of inquiry see cognitive closure.

Literary criticism and fiction

Gardner is considered an authority on Lewis Carroll; his annotated editions of Carroll's works were reissued in 1999 as The Annotated Alice. Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (ˈdɒdsən (27 January 1832 &ndash 14 January 1898 better known by the Pen name Lewis Carroll (/ˈkærəl/ was an English The Annotated Alice is a work by Martin Gardner incorporating the text of Lewis Carroll 's major tales Alice's Adventures in Wonderland His viewpoint has recently come under some criticism from the proponents of the "Carroll Myth"; Gardner has hit back very aggressively against the most famous of these - Karoline Leach - in a recent issue of Knight Letter, the journal of the Lewis Carroll Society of North America. Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (ˈdɒdsən (27 January 1832 &ndash 14 January 1898 better known by the Pen name Lewis Carroll (/ˈkærəl/ was an English Karoline Leach (born July 20, 1967) is a British Playwright and Author, best known for her book In the Shadow of the The Lewis Carroll Society of North America is a non-profit organization for the study of the works of Lewis Carroll.

In addition to his Carroll books, Gardner has produced “Annotated” editions of Chesterton’s The Innocence Of Father Brown and The Man Who Was Thursday as well as of celebrated poems including The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Casey at the Bat and The Night Before Christmas. Gilbert Keith Chesterton (29 May 1874 – 14 June 1936 was an influential English writer of the early 20th century Father Brown is a fictional detective created The Man Who Was Thursday A Nightmare is a Novel by G K Chesterton, first published in 1908 The Rime of the Ancient Mariner (original The Rime of the Ancyent Marinere) is the longest major Poem by the English Poet "Casey at the Bat", subtitled "A Ballad of the Republic Sung in the Year 1888" is a Baseball Poem written in 1888 by Ernest Thayer.

Gardner has occasionally tried his hand at fiction of a kind always closely associated with his non-fictional preoccupations (e. g. , Visitors from Oz, based on L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, and stories about an imaginary numerologist named Dr. Matrix). Visitors from Oz is an unofficial sequel to the Oz book series. Lyman Frank Baum ( May 15 1856 &ndash May 5 1919) was an American Author, Actor, and Independent filmmaker Numerology is any of many Systems Traditions or Beliefs in a mystical or Esoteric relationship between Numbers and physical Irving Joshua Matrix (born Japan, 1908 died Black Sea 1980 born Irving Joshua Bush and commonly known as Dr His short stories are collected in The No-Sided Professor and Other Tales of Fantasy, Humor, Mystery, and Philosophy (1987).

Controversy

In addition to his expository writing about mathematics, Gardner has been an avid controversialist on contemporary issues, arguing for his points of view in a wide range of fields, from general semantics to fuzzy logic to watching TV (he once wrote a negative review of Jerry Mander's book Four Arguments for the Elimination of Television). The term General Semantics refers to a non- Aristotelian Educational Discipline created by Alfred Korzybski (1879–1950 during the years Fuzzy logic is a form of Multi-valued logic derived from Fuzzy set theory to deal with Reasoning that is approximate rather than precise Jerry Mander is an American activist best known for his 1977 book Four Arguments for the Elimination of Television. Though particularly well known for his critique of pseudo-scientific beliefs, Gardner has also taken sides on political, economic, historical and philosophical controversies. His philosophical views, for example, are described and defended in his book The Whys of a Philosophical Scrivener.

Gardner is well known for his sometimes controversial philosophy of mathematics. He wrote negative reviews of The Mathematical Experience by Philip J. Davis and Reuben Hersh and What is mathematics, really? by Hersh, both of which were critical of aspects of mathematical Platonism, and the first of which was well-received by the mathematical community. The Mathematical Experience is a 1981 book by Philip J Davis and Reuben Hersh that discusses the practice of modern Mathematics from a For other persons named Philip Davis see Philip Davis (disambiguation. Reuben Hersh (born 1927 is an American Mathematician and Academic, best known for his writings on the nature practice and social impact of mathematics While Gardner is often perceived as a hard-core Platonist, his reviews demonstrate some formalist tendencies. Gardner maintains that his views are widespread among mathematicians, but Hersh has countered that in his experience as a professional mathematician and speaker, this is not the case. [1]

Works

Books by Martin Gardner

Note: Gardner has a number of books on magic written "for the trade", which are not listed here. Exposure in magic refers to the practice of making magical methods (the "secrets" of how Magic tricks are performed available to those who are not magicians

Collections of Scientific American columns

Fifteen books together encompass Martin Gardner's columns from Scientific American:

Three other books collect some or all of Martin Gardner's columns from Scientific American:

See also

References

External links

Persondata
NAME Gardner, Martin
ALTERNATIVE NAMES
SHORT DESCRIPTION American recreational mathematician, magician, skeptic, and magazine columnist
DATE OF BIRTH October 21, 1914
PLACE OF BIRTH Tulsa, Oklahoma
DATE OF DEATH
PLACE OF DEATH
Events 1512 - Martin Luther joins the theological faculty of the University of Wittenberg. Year 1914 ( MCMXIV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year
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