Literary Analysis Essay Finding Fibonacci

Introduction

This book is a detailed narration of Keith Devlin about the story of Leonardo of Pisa concerning the mathematical contributions that he made. Leonardo of Pisa was famously known as Fibonacci. Finding Fibonacci encompasses Delvin's quest for manuscripts, adventures in Italy, and an additional chapter on the effect of Leonardo's book Liber Abaci. The book can be viewed as a reflection journal and personal travel with most of the material concerning Fibonacci extracted from the earlier work of the authors. The details and content concerning Fibonacci are contained in the first book. Apart from the short chapter on modern finance and appendix, there is no material or information about Leonardo that is in the book Finding Fibonacci. Anyone interested in reading more about Fibonacci will find the first book informative in terms of the work and life of the mathematician.

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Despite the books being written in a very readable and engaging manner, they contain some errors which readers should be aware of. For example, Devlin yields to historical presentism and views the mathematical acts of the past via a similar lens as those of recent research mathematicians (Devlin and Fibonacci 32). Devlin writes that Fibonacci was aware that individuals had little or no interest in abstract problems and hence polished up the abstractions through writing realistic and concrete ones. The hypothesis on Leonardo's motivation that he was really after focusing on pure mathematics and not promulgating a more advanced arithmetical system for business is hard to justify since there is inadequate primary source and role of mathematics in society during that time in history.

Besides, Devlin indicates that Europe's relentless rise to dominating the world in terms of finance and trade was as a result of the Hindu-Arabic numeral system. There are little or no chances that changing the arithmetical system alone resulted in economic growth. Devlin, in the book, makes a strong case for Leonardo's arguing that it was Leonardo's book that directed the switch to the modern number system. Nevertheless, the book Finding Fibonacci is, at times, repetitive, and it ought to have gained from tighter editing. The most significant contribution of Fibonacci was an expositor of mathematical ideas in a way that could be understood by ordinary people. Nevertheless, Fibonacci, after his demise, he was forgotten until the 1960s when his true accomplishments were recognized (Devlin and Fibonacci 90). Devlin elaborates on the disappointments, false starts, the occasional lucky and unexpected turns that he went through in his search. Fibonacci assisted in reviving the west as the cradle of commerce, technology, and science.

In the book, what Devlin appreciates most in Fibonacci is that he was the instigator and initiator of spreading the revolutionary system of Hindu-Arabic numbers. Since the initiation of these numbers, the world changed, and it has never been the same. The book Liber Abaci is a fantastic work of didactics, though it was written in Latin, a language that is unfamiliar to the merchants and bankers. Original copies of the book are no longer available, and it is only the transcripts which are available. Nonetheless, there exist hundreds of smaller versions that are written in local Italian dialects. The smaller versions were used in spreading the algebraic methods and the new numeral system. The main point elaborated by Devlin in the book is that Fibonacci ought to be glorified not only for modeling the reproduction capacity of rabbits but also for his insights into the capabilities provided by his numeral system. Moreover, the book points out how he assisted in making sure that the numeral system has spread in the western world. Keith Devlin, in 2011, published a book on Fibonacci known as the "The man of Numbers. Fibonacci's Arithmetic Revolution," whose main intention was to have the biography of the mathematician (Devlin and Fibonacci 91). However, little is known about Fibonacci; the book is also a comprehensive discussion of his influence, legacy, and his Liber abaci. The book Finding Fibonacci gives a description of the Keith quest of collecting information and resources required in writing the biography of Fibonacci. The book provides a summary of what is already in the book "The man of Numbers." This book is a making-of earlier versions having a lot of background information. The book shows that in collecting all the information, Devlin went through a lot of unfortunate setbacks and lucky coincidences. At times, he had to deal with funny situations such as lack of optimal communication between English and Italian or dealing with a laid back attitude in the Mediterranean. The book also shows his emotions as he was going through the old manuscripts. The book "Finding Fibonacci" also gives a description of what happened after the book "The man of Numbers" was published (Devlin and Fibonacci 95). The book describes in a short chapter the parallel between the computer revolution started by Steve Jobs and the arithmetic revolution led by Fibonacci.

Based on my response, the book makes too much of an analogy between photocopies and manuscripts. Moreover, it also has some other intriguing and curious aspects. Based on the storyline of the book, it is as if the author feels that the story is not enough in itself, and he provides an interesting description of his early mathematics struggle and a similar fascinating regarding well-known mathematics. My favorite passages in the book are the incredible stories about Liber Abaci. Although a lot of people know about Leonardo of Pisa through the numbers that were named after him, it is correct to refer him as the Steve Jobs of the 13th century who ushered in the revolution. The book also includes comprehensive material by William regarding the role of Leonardo's at the start of modern finance. The documents included examples on topics such as currency exchange, present value analysis, and interest calculations. There is so much to enjoy in this book. Devlin's enthusiasm for Leonardo's story is infectious. The author leads a cheerful pursuit in rediscovering the hero of 13th century European mathematics. Devlin takes readers across centuries and through the back streets of modern Italy and medieval in this surprising and entertaining history. He associated the adventures of Leonardo's with charm and brio. The readers of his book will enjoy this deft and engage in a mix of personal travelogue, mathematics, and history. It is intriguing how Fibonacci was able to write a work which has astounding importance to the current world. By reading the book, one is left with profound gratitude for not only the dedication of Fibonacci to make his discovery available to the world but also the efforts of Delvin to illuminate us the far-reaching impact of the mathematician. I highly recommend the book to anyone who is a lover and passionate about history and maths.

Works Cited

Devlin, Keith J, and Leonardo Fibonacci. Finding Fibonacci: the quest to rediscover the forgotten mathematical genius who changed the world. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2019.