This book tells the stories of some of the great quests of mathematics, such as the centuries-long pursuit for the proof of Fermat's Last Theorem. These quests are searches for difficult-to-discover universal truths, pursued with passion not only by mathematicians and scientists, but by kings, emperors and even Jean-Luc Picard, the captain of Star Trek's Starship Enterprise. Some of their exploits are adventures as fascinating as any historical or current-day drama. The truths they have discovered help us understand not only mathematics, but also the Universe — and sometimes, ourselves.
In addition to well-known quests such as Fermat's Last Theorem and the Goldbach Conjecture, some of the chapters describe more recent pursuits such as the Traveling Salesman Problem and the Multi-armed Bandit Problem. While some of the quests have been completed, others are still ongoing, and one (the Six Squares Problem) can be understood — and maybe even solved — by a five-year-old child.
Readership: This book is targeted toward general readers interested in mathematics or the history of mathematics. Most of the book can be appreciated by people who have at most the equivalent of highschool-level courses in algebra and geometry. This book is an especially attractive resource for mathematics teachers at the elementary and secondary levels.
