Ethnomathematics

In this truly one-of-a-kind book Ascher introduces the mathematical ideas of people in traditional or small-scale cultures often omitted from discussion of mathematics. Topics such as Numbers: Words and Symbols Tracing Graphs in the Sand The Logic of Kin Relations Chance and Strategy in Games and Puzzles and The Organization and Modeling of Space are traced in various cultures including the Inuit Navajo and Iroquois of North America; the Inca of South America; the Malekula Warlpiri Maori and Caroline Islanders of Oceania and the Tshokwe Bushoong and Kpelle of Africa. As Ascher explores mathematical ideas involving numbers logic spatial configuration and the organization of these into systems and structures readers gain both a broader understanding and anappreciation for the idease of other peoples.