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A high-class puzzle book from the bestselling author of Alex's Adventures in Numberland; organised from easy-peasy to ninja level - with stories of puzzle mysteries, histories and scandals along the way this book will make your hippocampus happy.
Thought you had it bad? In this book, you will be: Imprisoned by a sadistic logician. Challenged to raise dogs from the dead. Trapped on a burning island. And much more besides . . . Everything is at stake in this compendium of more than 150 ingenious puzzles, selected to reveal the wonderful diversity of brainteasers that have confounded and intrigued solvers for the last thousand years. You'll need to pit your wits against probability problems, wrestle with wordplay, grapple with geometry and scrabble for survival. Along the way you will discover stories of whip-smart thinkers, eccentric novelists and a poodle with allegedly supernatural powers. You will absorb fascinating and important mathematical ideas. Some solutions will rely on ingenuity, some will challenge you to spot hidden patterns, others call for extreme rationality. All will surprise, entertain and stretch your brain. Will you make it out with your puzzling pride intact?
This best-of compilation features 101 of the most entertaining and challenging math puzzles ever published. No advanced knowledge of mathematics is necessary, just solid thinking and puzzle-solving skills. Includes complete solutions.
Intriguing collection features recreational math, logic, and creativity puzzles. Classic and new puzzles include The Monty Hall Problem, The Unexpected Hanging, The Shakespeare Puzzles, and Finger Multiplication.
From Ashima Shiraishi, one of the world's youngest and most skilled climbers, comes a true story of strength and perseverance--in rock climbing and in life. To a rock climber, a boulder is called a "problem," and you solve it by climbing to the top. There are twists and turns, falls and scrapes, and obstacles that seem insurmountable until you learn to see the possibilities within them. And then there is the moment of triumph, when there's nothing above you but sky and nothing below but a goal achieved. Ashima Shiraishi draws on her experience as a world-class climber in this story that challenges readers to tackle the problems in their own lives and rise to greater heights than they would have ever thought possible.
From triangles, rotations and power laws, to cones, curves and the dreaded calculus, Alex takes you on a journey of mathematical discovery with his signature wit and limitless enthusiasm. He sifts through over 30,000 survey submissions to uncover the world’s favourite number, and meets a mathematician who looks for universes in his garage. He attends the World Mathematical Congress in India, and visits the engineer who designed the first roller-coaster loop. Get hooked on math as Alex delves deep into humankind’s turbulent relationship with numbers, and reveals how they have shaped the world we live in.
Put your wits—and survival instincts—to the test! Publisher’s Note: Perilous Problems for Puzzle Lovers was previously published in the UK under the title So You Think You’ve Got Problems? In Perilous Problems for Puzzle Lovers, Alex Bellos collects 125 of the world’s greatest stumpers—many dangerous to your person, and all dangerous to your pride. Brace yourself to wrestle with wordplay, grapple with geometry, and scramble for survival. For example . . . Ten lions and a sheep are in a pen. Any lion who eats the sheep will fall asleep. A sleeping lion will be eaten by another lion, who falls asleep in turn. If the lions are all perfect logicians, what happens? Bellos pairs his fiendish brainteasers with fascinating history, so you’ll meet Alcuin, Sam Loyd, and other puzzle masters of yore—in between deranged despots and wily jailers with an unaccountable taste for riddles. Will you make it out alive? And what about the sheep?
Do you ever feel as though your life isn't what it was meant to be? Do you ever feel as though no matter what you've achieved it's never enough? As though there's something missing? A hole deep inside you can't fill no matter what you do, gently nagging away at you every day? Do you feel unfulfilled, alone or stuck? Do you feel as though no-one really understands you or knows who you really are? Do you ever worry about what other people think of you or spend your time thinking too much about what those other people are doing? Do you drink too much alcohol to get you through the week? Do you take drugs or watch too much porn? Do you find yourself compulsively picking up your phone to check for messages or to scroll mindlessly through social media accounts? Do you gamble or work too many hours? Do you struggle to sleep or have stomach problems? Do you ever explode with anger at what later feels like the smallest thing? Do you lie? Do you cheat? Do you manipulate? Do you need to be in control of everything around you? Do you bite your tongue and not say what you really want to say? Do you suffer from depression or any other mental-health issues, or do you have any physical health issues the doctors can't cure? If you could start your life all over again, would you make different decisions? Would you change the life you have if you could do it without anyone ever knowing how you really feel? If you answered yes to any one or more of the above questions, I know how you feel. I solved those problems in my life and now help people around the world solve their problems by addressing the root causes rather than treating the symptoms. Whether it's PTSD, anxiety, depression or something else entirely - I am here to help. Using tried and tested techniquesfrom the worlds of psychology, emotions, human behaviour, and NLP - amongst others - I can help you overcome your phobias, your addictions, and whatever else is holding you back in life. This is not about becoming a billionaire or buying a private jet. It's not about increasing your financial wealth or boosting your productivity. There are no life hacks in the work I do. This is about transforming your life from the ground up. In this book, I share everything I've learned that has transformed my life and the lives of people all around the world. It's 650 pages packed with everything I've learnt, which is two or three books for the price of one.
"The author makes a compelling case that we often start solving a problem before thinking deeply about whether we are solving the right problem. If you want the superpower of solving better problems, read this book." -- Eric Schmidt, former CEO, Google Are you solving the right problems? Have you or your colleagues ever worked hard on something, only to find out you were focusing on the wrong problem entirely? Most people have. In a survey, 85 percent of companies said they often struggle to solve the right problems. The consequences are severe: Leaders fight the wrong strategic battles. Teams spend their energy on low-impact work. Startups build products that nobody wants. Organizations implement "solutions" that somehow make things worse, not better. Everywhere you look, the waste is staggering. As Peter Drucker pointed out, there's nothing more dangerous than the right answer to the wrong question. There is a way to do better. The key is reframing, a crucial, underutilized skill that you can master with the help of this book. Using real-world stories and unforgettable examples like "the slow elevator problem," author Thomas Wedell-Wedellsborg offers a simple, three-step method - Frame, Reframe, Move Forward - that anyone can use to start solving the right problems. Reframing is not difficult to learn. It can be used on everyday challenges and on the biggest, trickiest problems you face. In this visually engaging, deeply researched book, you’ll learn from leaders at large companies, from entrepreneurs, consultants, nonprofit leaders, and many other breakthrough thinkers. It's time for everyone to stop barking up the wrong trees. Teach yourself and your team to reframe, and growth and success will follow.
