For instructors of liberal arts mathematics classes who focus on problem-solving, Harold Jacobs's remarkable textbook has long been the answer, helping teachers connect with of math-anxious students. Drawing on over thirty years of classroom experience, Jacobs shows students how to make observations, discover relationships, and solve problems in the context of ordinary experience. (WorldCat)
Subjects: • The path of billiard ball • More billiard-ball mathematics • Inductive reasoning: Finding and extending patterns • The limitations of inductive reasoning • Deductive reasoning: Mathematical proof • Number tricks and deductive reasoning • Arithmetic sequences: Growth at a constant rate • Geometric sequences: Growth at an increasing rate • The binary sequence • The sequence of squares • The sequence of cubes • The Fibonacci sequence • The idea of a function • Descartes and the coordinate graph • Graphing linear functions • Functions with parabolic graphs • More functions with curved graphs • Interpolation and extrapolation: Guessing between and beyond • Large numbers • Scientific notation • An introduction to logarithms • Logarithms and scientific notation • Computing with Logarithms • Logarithmic scales • Symmetry • Regular polygons • Mathematical mosaics • Regular polyhedra: The platonic solids • Semiregular polyhedra • Pyramids and prisms • The circle and the ellipse • The parabola • They hyperbola • The sine curve • Spirals • The cycloid • The fundamental counting principle • Permutations • More on permutations • Combinations • Probability:The measure of chance • Binomial probability • Pascal's triangle • Dice games and probability • Independent and dependent events • The birthday problem: Complementary events • Organizing data: Frequency distributions • The breaking of ciphers and codes: An application of statistics • Measures of location • Measures of variability • Displaying data: Statistical graphs • Collecting data: Sampling • The mathematics of distortion • The seven bridges of Königsberg: An introduction to networks • Euler paths • Trees • The Möbius strip and other surfaces. (WorldCat)
I love this math text! It happens to be one of my favorite books of all time. You know, I didn't even like mathematics before I started teaching. Funny then, that after five years of doing so I would find a text book that intrigued me so much that it would become a highly prized object.
There is more to mathematics than computational techniques! Jacobs' clear and entertaining text (which is full of cartoons, pictures, and anecdotes) inspires a love of math. Each chapter invites the reader to discover for himself the patterns and structure of a particular topic. This book helped to convert me into someone who appreciated mathematics.
Random people on the internet say this is good for a student who needs a bit of a break from more hardcore mathematics. (Specifically suggested in a thread about what to do with someone who completed pre-algebra.)