Memoirs of a Proof Theorist: Gödel and Other Logicians

by Gaisi Takeuti, Mariko Yasugi (Translator), Nicholas Passell (Translator)

This volume is a translation of the book Gödel, written in Japanese by Gaisi Takeuti, a distinguished proof theorist. The core of the book comprises a memoir of K Gödel, Takeuti's personal recollections, and his interpretation of Gödel's attitudes towards mathematical logic. It also contains Takeuti's recollection of association with some other famous logicians. Everything in the book is original, as the author adheres to his own experiences and interpretations. There is also an article on Hilbert's second problem as well as on the author's fundamental conjecture about second order logic.

Genres: Logic

135 pages, Hardcover

First published February 1, 2003

Reviews

[Dan Saattrup · Rating 3 out of 5]

There was a lot of repetitions (which he warns the reader about in the beginning as well though), and quite a lot of grammatical errors, but it was nonetheless a very insightful view into the lives of Gödel as well as other remarkable logicians as well as getting an overview of their results. Also, getting a view into them as persons made it possible to relate to them, in a way, as human beings like the rest of us.

I acknowledge the authenticity of the book, but nevertheless, the repetitions and grammar issues force me to not give above 3 stars.