Magical Mathematics: The Mathematical Ideas That Animate Great Magic Tricks

by Persi Diaconis, Ron Graham, Martin Gardner (Foreword by)

Overview

The mathematics behind some of the world's most amazing card tricks

Magical Mathematics reveals the secrets of fun-to-perform card tricks—and the profound mathematical ideas behind them—that will astound even the most accomplished magician. Persi Diaconis and Ron Graham provide easy, step-by-step instructions for each trick, explaining how to set up the effect and offering tips on what to say and do while performing it. Each card trick introduces a new mathematical idea, and varying the tricks in turn takes readers to the very threshold of today's mathematical knowledge.

Diaconis and Graham tell the stories—and reveal the best tricks—of the eccentric and brilliant inventors of mathematical magic. The book exposes old gambling secrets through the mathematics of shuffling cards, explains the classic street-gambling scam of three-card Monte, traces the history of mathematical magic back to the oldest mathematical trick—and much more.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780691169774
Publisher:	Princeton University Press
Publication date:	10/13/2015
Pages:	264
Sales rank:	728,127
Product dimensions:	8.40(w) x 9.40(h) x 0.60(d)

About the Author

Persi Diaconis is professor of mathematics and statistics at Stanford University, and a former professional magician. Ron Graham (1935–2020) was professor of mathematics and computer science at the University of California, San Diego, and a former professional juggler.

Table of Contents

Foreword ix

Preface xi





Chapter 1: Mathematics in the Air 1

Royal Hummer 8

Back to Magic 15





Chapter 2: In Cycles 17

The Magic of de Bruijn Sequences 18

Going Further 25





Chapter 3: Is This Stuff Actually Good For Anything? 30

Robotic Vision 30

Making Codes 34

To the Core of Our Being 38

This de Bruijn Stuff Is Cool but Can It Get You a Job? 42





Chapter 4: Universal Cycles 47

Order Matters 47

A Mind-reading Effect 52

Universal Cycles Again 55





Chapter 5: From the Gilbreath Principle to the Mandelbrot Set 61

The Gilbreath Principle 61

The Mandelbrot Set 72





Chapter 6: Neat Shuffles 84

A Mind-reading Computer 85

A Look Inside Perfect Shuffles 92

A Look Inside Monge and Milk Shuffles 96

A Look Inside Down-and-Under Shuffles 98

All the Shuffles Are Related 99





Chapter 7: The Oldest Mathematical Entertainment? 103

The Miracle Divination 105

How Many Magic Tricks Are There? 114





Chapter 8: Magic in the Book of Changes 119

Introduction to the Book of Changes 121

Using the I Ching for Divination 122

Probability and the Book of Changes 125

Some Magic (Tricks) 127

Probability and the I Ching 136





Chapter 9: What Goes Up Must Come Down 137

Writing It Down 138

Getting Started in Juggling 145
10 Stars of Mathematical Magic (and some of the best tricks in the book) 153

Alex Elmsley 156

Bob Neale 160

Henry Christ 173

Stewart James 181

Charles Thornton Jordan 189

Bob Hummer 201

Martin Gardner 211





Chapter 11: Going further 220

Chapter 12: on secrets 225

Notes 231

Index 239

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"Finally a book that celebrates the math involved in magic. This is quite simply the most brilliant book ever written on this mind-blowing, highly secretive field."—David Blaine, illusionist

"A remarkably appealing concoction of conjuring, invention, education, science, homage, and memoir—it is like no other book in the long history of magic."—Ricky Jay, author, actor, and one of the world's best sleight-of-hand artists

"A truly stunning exposition by two masters in the field. Diaconis and Graham trace the fascinating relationship between mathematics and magic, which goes back at least eight hundred years. Nothing like this has been published before. Magical Mathematics is a huge contribution both to magic and mathematics."—Colm Mulcahy, author of Card Colm, an online column hosted by the Mathematical Association of America

"Magical Mathematics is a truly magical book, containing ample amounts of mathematics and magic that will amaze and amuse. Diaconis and Graham are both first-rate mathematicians and performers, and offer insights and ideas that could not have been expressed by anyone else. This book is destined to be a classic on the subject."—Arthur Benjamin, coauthor of Secrets of Mental Math: The Mathemagician's Guide to Lightning Calculation and Amazing Math Tricks

"This is a wonderful book, unique and engaging. Diaconis and Graham manage to convey the awe and marvels of mathematics, and of magic tricks, especially those that depend fundamentally on mathematical ideas. They range over many delicious topics, giving us an enchanting personal view of the history and practice of magic, of mathematics, and of the fascinating connection between the two cultures. Magical Mathematics will have an utterly devoted readership."—Barry Mazur, author of Imagining Numbers: (particularly the square root of minus fifteen)

"Magical Mathematics is a wonder to behold. It instantly seduces the reader with goodies new and old, and is just as perfect for long-term study. There are also surprises for those well familiar with the magical realm."—Robert E. Neale, magician

Editorial Reviews

"From arcane theories to practical tips for working magicians, the authors go behind the curtain and reveal how the pros do it."

San Jose Mercury News

"The first chapter of this book begins by teaching a simple four-card trick and ends by presenting—complete with step-by-step color illustrations—a more complicated card trick that will truly amaze any audience. Both tricks are based on mathematical principles, and the book goes on to explain these and many other principles that can be the basis for a variety of clever magic tricks."

Games

"Winner of the 2013 Euler Book Prize, Mathematical Association of America"

Honorable Mention for the 2012 Award for Best Professional/Scholarly Book in Popular Science & Popular Mathematics, Association of American Publishers

From the Publisher

"Magical Mathematics gives readers a peek behind the velvet curtain that hides the magician's secrets. . . . The book covers some nifty card tricks, juggling, codes and a slew of mind-bending puzzles. The book doesn't just tell you how to fool and impress your friends with parlour tricks, it explains why these tricks work, so that you can go on to devise your own—in fact, the authors challenge you to do just that. The writing is lively and the tricks are well set-up, providing newbie magicians with both points of view: what the audience sees and what the magician knows."

Montreal Gazette

"Learn the secrets behind card tricks, including step-by-step instructions for performing them, along with the mathematical ideas the tricks illustrate."

Science News

"The Riemann hypothesis, the Mandelbrot set, Fermat's last theorem—these mathematical notions and others underlie all manner of magic tricks. Mathematicians Persi Diaconis—also a card magician—and Ron Graham—also a juggler—unveil the connections between magic and math in this well-illustrated volume."

Scientific American

"Magical Mathematics strikes a nice balance between descriptions of performable magic tricks and the mathematics that makes them work. Unlike some 'mathemagic' books, in this work, Diaconis and Graham describe magic tricks that are actually used by professionals. . . . [T]he writing is engaging, and learning the tricks that are presented is well worth the effort. . . . This volume should find a place in any mathematics or magic library collection."

Choice

"Writing for the public, the two authors share their passions, teaching sophisticated mathematical concepts along with interesting card tricks, which rely upon those principles for their workings."

GENII: The Conjurors' Magazine

"Writing for the public, the two authors share their passions, teaching sophisticated mathematical concepts along with interesting card tricks, which rely upon those principles for their workings."

GENII: The Conjurors' Magazine