Fermat's Last Theorem

This is a remarkable and engrossing human story about the search for the proof to the age old Fermat's last theorem. A story which tells the tale of one man's unflinching determination and single minded devotion to the cause of this proof. The events which unfold and the riveting account of Andrew Wiles journey to glory are told in this gripping tale by Simon Singh. Singh's master storytelling abilities are very well exemplified and will be appreciated by one and all. Those not inclined mathematically will also gain insights and concepts of mathematics and also get a peek at the lives of the mathematicians who are featured in this book.

Andrew Wiles read about this theorem when he was barely ten year old in a library while flipping through one of E.T. Bell's book. The rest as we know is history because this particular moment became a turning point in young Wiles life. This would force him to take a career in mathematics and lead a rigorous life in mathematics. Later he would be shutting and isolating himself from the outside world so that he could devote his complete attention to the task at hand - to solve this 17th century conjecture devised by the great Pierre Fermat. History saw this theorem remaining unsolved for 350 years, which eluded mathematicians like Euler, Sophie Germain, Lame, Kummer, Cauchy et al. but who nevertheless had their own bit of contribution to the proof in particular and mathematics in general.

Andrew Wiles mathematical proof of the century was not without its share of pitfalls. After announcing the proof of Fermat's Last Theorem in June 1993 with much fanfare and publicity, Wiles didn't have the wildest idea about what was in store for him... something which will almost make him accept defeat...

Though Prof. Wiles succeeded in his endeavor, his proof was based on post-Fermat mathematical ideas like the Taniyama-Shimura conjecture, Galois group theory, Iwasawa theory and the Kolyvagin-Flach method. Fermat on the other hand had claimed that he possessed the proof for the theorem which obviously was based on mathematics of his time...

A brilliant mathematical drama (3/5 people found this helpful)

Be prepared to leave this world and enter another. Besides finding very interesting historical and easy to follow mathematical facts (with some interesting easy to follow proofs at the end of the book) you may well find yourself experiencing strong emotions (what may surprise you if you are a cold mathematician). Fermat's last theorem states that for every n \in {3,4,...} there are no x,y,z \in N={1,2,...} such that x^n + y^n = z^n. Even the theorem is a statement that every child can now understand the greatest mathematical minds failed to prove it for 250 years. "I have found a simple and yet brilliant proof, which this margin is too small to show." Is this statement of Pierre de Fermat true or not is still a mystery. Wiles' proof is so complex and requires so much of the mathematical knowledge in the field that only a few mathematicians in the world have a privilege to follow it and understand it. After you read this book you will feel differently. Congratulations to Simon Singh, Andrew Wiles and all the people contributed to Fermat's Last Theorem. (\in = is element of, x^n = x to the power of n) QED

Very surprising! (2/2 people found this helpful)

I was browsing through amazon and I found this title. I didn't know you could write a readable book about a mathematical theory! It was a (surprisingly) fascinating tour through the history and the people that dedicate their lives to it. I never really disliked mathematics but this book gave e a whole new view on the subject.

Simply.... SUPERB. Faultlessly written (1/1 people found this helpful)

This is a superb book writen in a highly readable, entertaining and clear fashion. A HIGHLY complex subject explained in laymens terms, I cant fault it. Simon Singh is a superb Author and I also highly recomend his book 'the code book' equally well written and entertaining. What more can i say...

Excellent, gripping, but slightly incomplete (4/4 people found this helpful)

This is a very exciting book to read, and the proofs provided in the appendix are easy for the amateur to understand. I kept reading "one more page" to find out what happened next, late into the night! However I would have liked a better explanation of modular forms and the way in which L-series (the author calls them E-series) can be equated to M-series. I appreciate this is an advanced area of mathematics; but the author explains eliptic curves / equations but neglects to treat modular forms in the same way. The whole point of the proof of FLT was that by proving that every eliptic curve was analogous to a modular form, then a special eliptic curve (described by assuming x^n + y^n = z^n had a solution where n is a whole number greater than 2) did not have an equivalent modular form, therefore FLT was true.

Sorry if I have simplified this a bit, but it would have been nice to appreciate somewhat *how* you match up eliptic curves with modular forms.

Still, it was a thoroughly engrossing read and I would recommend it to anyone with even a passing interest in the wonderful world of number theory.

Fermat's Last Theorem

Simon Singh

Editorial Review:

Reader Reviews:

A human drama unfolds ... in a mathematical world! (5/5 people found this helpful)

A brilliant mathematical drama (3/5 people found this helpful)

Very surprising! (2/2 people found this helpful)

Simply.... SUPERB. Faultlessly written (1/1 people found this helpful)

Excellent, gripping, but slightly incomplete (4/4 people found this helpful)

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