The Perfect Shape - by Øyvind Hammer (Hardcover)

From the Back Cover

This book uses the spiral shape as a key to a multitude of strange and seemingly disparate stories about art, nature, science, mathematics, and the human endeavour. In a way, the book is itself organized as a spiral, with almost disconnected chapters circling around and closing in on the common theme. A particular strength of the book is its extremely cross-disciplinary nature - everything is fun, and everything is connected! At the same time, the author puts great emphasis on mathematical and scientific correctness, in contrast, perhaps, with some earlier books on spirals. Subjects include the mathematical properties of spirals, sea shells, sun flowers, Greek architecture, air ships, the history of mathematics, spiral galaxies, the anatomy of the human hand, the art of prehistoric Europe, Alfred Hitchcock, and spider webs, to name a few.

Review Quotes

"He has produced a curious book that is full of short segments on spirals, their mathematics and their occurrence in both the natural and man-made worlds. ... it really does deserve to be published by Springer. It is a worthy addition ... . The mathematically-oriented reader will likely be fascinated by this charming book." (Jeff Ibbotson, MAA Reviews, October, 2017)

"Coverage consists of 53 short chapters that present mathematical insights, astronomical wonders, biological phenomena, and architectural and artistic considerations guaranteed to intrigue. ... The content is focused on appreciating the beauty of each spiral or helical shape presented, and the richness of the extensive photographs and illustrations provide a visual feast. Quite simply, these spiral stories deliver an enriching experience for the reader. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-division undergraduates and general readers." (N. W. Schillow, Choice, Vol. 54 (12), August, 2017)

About the Author

Øyvind Hammer has an MSc in mathematical modeling and a PhD in palaeontology, and is currently Associate Professor in palaeontology at the Natural History Museum, University of Oslo. He has published a large number of scientific papers and two books on a wide range of subjects, including palaeontology, geology, zoology, botany, physics, and statistics, but his main focus is currently the fossil record of mainland and Arctic Norway. He is one of the most cited Norwegian scientists, not least because of his data analysis software "Past". Hammer is an active teacher and science communicator, with a widely read popular science blog and frequent public lectures and media appearances.