First published in Great Britain in 2010
Copyright © 2010 by Alex Bellos
Illustrations © 2010 by Andy Riley
The moral right of the author has been asserted
Bloomsbury Publishing Plc, 36 Soho Square, London W1D 3QY
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Mathematical diagrams by Oxford Designers and Illustrators
All papers used by Bloomsbury Publishing are natural, recyclable products made from wood grown in well-managed forests. The manufacturing processes conform to the environmental regulations of the country of origin.
Plate Section Picture Credits:
p. 1 (top), p. 1 (bottom), p. 6 (top), p. 6 (bottom), p. 7 (top),
p. 7 (bottom), p. 12 (top), p. 15 (top), p. 15 (bottom), p. 16
(top) © Alex Bellos; pp. 2–3 SR Euclid Collection, UCL Library
Services, Special Collections; p. 4 (top), p. 4 (bottom) © Robert
Lang; p. 5 (top) © Eva Madrazo, 2009. Used under license from
Shutterstock.com; p. 5 (bottom) © Neil Mason; p. 8 Le Casse-tête en
portraits, Gandais, Paris, 1818, from the Slocum Puzzle Collection,
Lilly Library; p. 9 Thanks to Jerry Slocum; p. 10 (top left), p. 10
(top right), p. 10 (bottom left), p. 10 (bottom right), p. 11 ©
Christopher Lane; p. 12 (bottom), p. 13 Thanks to Eddy Levin; p. 14
© FLC/ADAGP, Paris and DACS, London 2009; p. 16 (bottom) © Daina
Taimina.