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Elements of Mathematics takes readers on a fascinating tour that begins in elementary mathematics - but, as John Stillwell shows, this subject is not as elementary or straightforward as one might think. Not all topics that are part of today´s elementary mathematics were always considered as such, and great mathematical advances and discoveries had to occur in order for certain subjects to become "elementary." Stillwell examines elementary mathematics from a distinctive twenty-first-century viewpoint and describes not only the beauty and scope of the discipline, but also its limits.

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"Stillwell is . . . One of the better current mathematical authors: he writes clearly and engagingly, and makes more of an effort than most to provide historical detail and a sense of how various mathematical ideas tie in with one another. . . . The features we have learned to expect from Stillwell (including, but not limited to, excellent writing) are present in [Elements of Mathematics] as well."--MAA Reviews

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John Stillwell is professor of mathematics at the University of San Francisco. His many books include Mathematics and Its History and Roads to Infinity.

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