Grandpa, Tell Us About Phi, the Golden Number: Explore the amazing connection between nature and math!

by John P. Choisser

This is a book for people from 9 to 90 who like surprises. And beauty. My intention is to show the beauty in both nature and mathematics, with some surprising connections that will make you stop and think. This book is particularly valuable for homeschooling, including exploratory projects for the students. With this and future books, I want to foster curiosity, particularly in young people who might now see beyond boring or dull school subjects into a new world of science, physics, engineering, and math.In this book, Grandpa and his grandchildren embark on an adventure into the fascinating connection between nature and a number called phi (ϕ). Phi is also called the Golden Number, the Golden Ratio, the Golden Section, and the Divine Proportion. It is an irrational number, like pi (π), and its value is approximately 1.618. One of the interesting facts about phi is its relationship to the famous Fibonacci series and to the beautiful logarithmic spiral, one of the most beautiful shapes in nature. Grandpa and the children find Fibonacci numbers in the numbers of flower petals, the number of spirals on pine cones and pineapples, the shape of seashells, the genealogy of bees, how falcons attack their prey, the shape of soccer balls, and more. From the structure of a carbon crystal, to the spiral one sees in distant galaxies, phi is pervasive throughout nature. And over recorded history, it has had an effect on science, religion, astronomy, mathematics, art, and architecture.I hope that this book results in a few young people realizing that the wonders of nature and mathematics are worth more exploration and that because of that, our society gains a few good engineers, physicists, and natural scientists.

197 pages, Paperback

First published March 3, 2014

Reviews

[Tweedledum]

Why Oh Why is maths not taught like this? John Choisser has created a fascinating book exploring patterns in maths and nature that is highly accessible to children and adults. A good choice for any budding mathematician in your family. While some youngsters would be able to follow and investigate the ideas in the book independently I think this book would be most effective if read with an interested and supportive adult. It could also help to spark some children's interest in maths who have been discouraged by conventional teaching.

[Laura Cushing]

Unlike those of us who may have had a grandpa who told gruesome war stories or said 'that's the way it was and we liked it!', the grandpa in this story teaches his grandchildren about phi. He encourages the curiosity of the kids (and the reader) about the function of phi in nature and mathematical sequences.

I am not very good at math, but I was able to follow along with the great examples and diagrams given and the kids asked all the questions I would've asked grandpa if I was in the room. :) If I had a good teacher like this growing up, I might've had more curiosity and interest in mathematics. This book made me want to learn more and i will continue to explore the topic.

I'm hoping that the author will choose to write more Grandpa books.

I read this one for free on Kindle Unlimited, which is my very favorite way to read. So a win all around.

[Sancha]

Incredibly informative! Definitely recommended. 1 star missing because the book is about the life of a family, not what I expected.

[Vankayala Sujeet]

It's a mathematical revelation

Nicely paced, and keeps the suspence on!!
Like the layers of an onion, facts after facts revealed to the "uninitiated". Thanks!!!