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Loading... A Beautiful Mind: The Life of Mathematical Genius and Nobel Laureate John Nash (original 1998; edition 2012)by Sylvia Nasar (Author)Biography of brilliant mathematician John Nash, his descent into schizophrenia, and his remarkable (and rare) recovery. It includes his friendships and rivalries with other mathematicians. One of the highlights is his relationship with his wife, who had to deal with both his and their son’s mental illness. Nasar includes what she has discovered over the course of writing the book in terms of the heredity of schizophrenia and available treatments, which have changed over the years. I found it fascinating. I own many more paper books than electronic ones - I have the book-collecting bug. Anyway, I bought the paperback version of this book (currently cheaper than the Kindle version). A warning for others, the printing in the book is tiny My close vision is excellent for an oldie, but I doubt I will try to read my paper copy. I'm not sure why Faber chose a miniscule font - the book is around 450pp long, so maybe it was down to cost. ISBN-13 : 978-0571212927 What little I have read is very interesting - hence the 4 *'s https://nwhyte.livejournal.com/3806914.html I got a lot more out of the book than the film. It is honest where the film is not about Alicia's origins, John Nash's sexuality and the nature and course of his illness and career. It goes a bit into the mathematics without trying too hard; in the end, the non-specialist has to take the word of the specialist that this was all Really Important Stuff. But where the book excels is in its examination of the social and political construction of the environment where Nash worked. It had not occurred to me that the Princeton of Einstein (and Nash) was very different from the Princeton of Woodrow Wilson, just a few decades before. Nasar maps out very carefully how the decision of a few intellectual centres of excellence to invest in mathematics - or rather, in mathematicians - was driven by wider political and social currents, including McCarthyism and antisemitism (Nash himself also lurched into antisemitism, and not only when deluded). Her behind-the-scenes account of how Nash almost didn't get the 1994 Nobel Prize is one of the most gripping things I've ever read in a scientific biography. (Yeah, I know it's not technically a Nobel Prize. Sue me.) Some of Nash's friends queried whether the biography was ethical, given that it was written without his consent or cooperation. In fact his attitude was studiedly neutral, and Nasar clearly had full cooperation from his colleagues and lovers, which he could presumably have deterred if he had really wanted to. He was apparently pleased enough with it in the end, and enjoyed the film too, though he commented (rightly enough) that it wasn't really about him. Well-written and meticulously researched biography of John Forbes Nash, Jr. (1928-2015 according to Wikipedia), a brilliant American mathematician who descended into severe mental illness but recovered sufficiently to win the 1994 Nobel Prize in economics, and whose life inspired the film A Beautiful Mind . If you are expecting to read about the tragic story that has been shown in the Motion Picture that has won millions of people's hearts, I've got to start by telling you that this is not a Movie Tie-In of any kind, for the real life of John Nash was immensely different from the life of John Nash that has been shown in the Motion Picture. John Nash was indeed a Mathematician, A Nobel-Prize Winner, and a Madman, but he was nothing like the character the actor has portrayed in the Motion Picture. So don't expect to read about many things that have been seen in the Motion Picture, for some of them have never been part of the real John Nash's life. What you can expect to read about though, is some of the most complex concepts in the world of Math Theory and Game theory, and many other things from the real John Nash's life. Got to warn you though, that some of the things mentioned in this book are far from pretty. The biography of John Nash a brilliant man whose mental illness interrupts his life and affects those around him. He seems to be different or strange long before the mental illness takes over his life. 2044 will be an interesting to find out what went into his selection for the Nobel Prize. 2044 is when scholars can look at the notes and discussion that went into Nash's selection. Somehow with all that Nash dealt with he beats the odds and makes a recovery or remission depending on who is talking. This story is a testament to love, friends and coworkers who will not quit and try to help a man in trouble. "A man all alone in a strange world" By sally tarbox on 3 April 2018 Format: Kindle Edition A very interesting biography of mathematician and Nobel prize winner John Forbes Nash. From a 'good' background, Nash soon graduated on to becoming one of the top students at university, developing new theories and re-examining older problems (having only O level maths, much of this went right over my head.) But his behaviour - odd, arrogant, often unsocial - gradually morphed into something much worse, with a diagnosis of schizophrenia. How Nash continued his work, even after years of illness, makes for a fascinating read. The arguments of the Nobel committee over whether to make an award to a person with mental illness; the gradual rapprochement (and re-marriage to) the wife who had divorced him; the gradual building of a relationship with his illegitimate son (and the sadness of having to cope with the fact that his other son had his father's illness.) Nasar also helps the reader (even the non-mathematical) in having at least a vague idea of what value Nash's 'game theory' has to the man in the street. She looks at the 1994 'greatest auction ever', where the US government sold off airspace to TV companies etc; and how using the strategies of game theory helped maximize profits. Informative and very well written. I was wondering why this book seemed so inferior to Nasar's "The Grand Pursuit". Maybe it's because it was abridged for audio. This book was worthwhile, because it let me in on a few interesting bits that I didn't know, e.g., Nash made significant contributions outside game theory, he did a lot of traveling in Europe shortly before and after he became sick, Oppenheimer interceded for him a couple of times. But it was not particularly insightful or exciting. rivka points out that this would make a good book club selection... also her review: http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7084053 she says that lots of stuff was wrong, including the schizophrenic spy stuff came from the minds of the filmmakers."" Haven't seen the movie, and don't intend to. I'm not much of a movie fan. This is a comprehensive biography of John Nash that provides a glimpse into the worlds of academia, mental illness, and the Nobel prize process. I found the book more interesting as it went along...the first part is a lot about other scientists Mr. Nash worked with, which didn't interest me that much. Ms. Nasar has, I think, portrayed her subject with honesty and with an attempt to understand the tragedy of schizophrenia. Since I began reading A Beautiful Mind the question I've been asked most is: "How does it compare to the movie?" The simple answer: I don't know. I have not seen the film and after reading the book I have no desire to either. Even after having read the entire book from cover to cover and looking at the scant number of photographs included I come away feeling like I've learned very little about John Nash beyond what I already knew. The first third of the book serves more as a who's who in Nash's life than as a biography of Nash. Even Princeton University has a chapter. Princeton is a fairly well known institution, it doesn't need to be introduced as a character! The second third covers all of Nash's sexual exploits or potential exploits with men and women. Yawn. The final third deals with his mental breakdown and the people who tried to help him pull out of it. The final third was the most interesting piece of the book but it comes too late to save the book from being an over all dull and pointless read. Sylvia Nasar's biography of John Nash tells the story of this mathematical genius with precision, excellent scholarship and attention to background details that puts the motivations and actions of this man in the context of the time in which he was most active. She describes Cold War politics and McCarthyism, both of which had profound effects on mathematicians and physicists during the 50s, 60s and 70s. So why am I giving this book only 3 stars? Well, quite frankly, I didn't like the man! As we all know from the movie (which I actually haven't seen), he becomes schizophrenic, which occurs half way through the book. Before that, he was an insecure, arrogant tyrant who belittled anyone whose intellect did not measure up to his standards. Although blessed with positions at some of our most prestigious institutions, he was an indifferent teacher at best and a nasty one on the bad days. I kept thinking, "why do I have to wait for him to become schizophrenic (in the second half of the book) to develop empathy for this guy?" However that was the case. I certainly have enjoyed books about far worse people (e.g. Adolf Eichmann). I guess the way he treated his lovers, wife and children really got to me. Nevertheless, the book is really an excellent biography, well-researched and worth reading. Also, the story of him recovering his intellectual abilities, conquering schizophrenia as well as winning a Nobel Prize and reestablishing a life with his loved ones is very inspiring and redeeming. Reality, as reflected in this book, and the story told on film were actually quite different. I think that the true stories from the book were far more interesting than those chosen to be shown on film. In this case, people interested in John Nash are doing themselves a tremendous disservice if they skip the book in favour of the film. "'How could you,' Mackey asked, 'how could you, a mathematician, a man devoted to reason and logical proof. . . how could you believe that extra terrestrials are sending you messages? How could you believe that you are being recruited by aliens from outer space to save the world? How could you . . .?' "Nash looked up at last and fixed Mackey with an unblinking stare as cool and dispassionate as that of any bird or snake. 'Because,' Nash said slowly in his soft, reasonable southern drawl, as if talking to himself, 'the ideas I had about supernatural beings came to me the same way that my mathematical ideas did. So I took them seriously.'" A Beautiful Mind by Sylvia Nasar is the biography of John Forbes Nash. Nash was brilliant. (The movie was terrific, but often bore little resemblance to reality.) At twenty-one he had invented a theory of modern human behavior and his contributions to game theory would ultimately win him a Nobel Prize. As a young professor he solved some mathematical problems deemed "impossible" by other mathematicians. He also became insane. This most fascinating book is the story of his descent into schizophrenia and his sudden remission at age sixty-two. Nash had that spark of genius reserved for the extraordinary few. He could visualize answers to problems that baffled others, often working out proofs later. He worked and learned not by absorbing what others had already accomplished but by rediscovering the concepts on his own. He was "compulsively rational," and envied the emotionless, considering thinking machines superior to humans. He remained aloof from the mundane and was described by his contemporaries as "queer," "spooky," and "isolated." Ironically, he was to revolutionize the theories of social cooperation and conflict. Unlike Von Neumann who had focused on the group, Nash, in his twenty-seven-page dissertation thesis proposed a theory for game "in which there was a possibility of mutual gain. His insight was that the game [economics:] would be solved when every player independently chose his best responses to the other player's best strategies. . . a decentralized decision-making process could, in fact, be coherent." Princeton probably deserves the Nobel medal as much as anyone for sticking with the genius and putting up with his bizarre behavior as does his family who often sacrificed a great deal in their efforts to help him. Whether an "ordinary" person would have received such special care is perhaps another issue. What is truly ironic is that Nash's son suffers from the same condition as his father, but despite advances in pharmaceutical treatment for schizophrenia, his son has not displayed the signs of remission that brought his father back. |
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)510.92Natural sciences and mathematics Mathematics General Mathematics Biography And History BiographyLC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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