Synopses & Reviews
The main purpose of the book is to communicate a fundamental principle to the scientific world. The eventual impact of the subject matter is considered to be much wider than the readership of the preliminary accounts which have been published. The number principle at issue is known to be of wide general interest and the book has also been written to be accessible to nonspecialists. The potential readership should extend way beyond academic scientists.
The discovery described in this book could be of seminal significance, also in other fields where the golden ratio is known to be of fundamental importance. The most obvious connection is with Fibonacci phylotaxis in the study of botanical growth and the number basis of DNA coding. In another context it may impinge on crystallographic periodicity and the structure of quasicrystals. These topics are beyond the scope of this book and hence it is all the more important that the power of number theory to describe physical systems be disseminated more widely.
Review
From the reviews: "The book launch was held at the University of Pretoria (UP) on 26 March 2008. ... It's a fascinating and original concept and I hope you all get the opportunity to read it. It will challenge your current views of numbers. ... If there is a link between numbers and the Periodic Table this will of course have major implications as to the 'meaning' on the Periodic Table. It's great to have original thinkers in our midst!" (South African Chemical Institute Newsletter, Issue 3, 2008) "Some people believe that there exist links between the natural numbers and the physical world. This ... book looks for such links in what the authors call 'the periodicity of matter.' Readers with an interest in mathematics, science, or natural philosophy will find the book useful ... . it is aimed at researchers working on various branches of physics who might find it interesting to find related ideas in number theory. ... can be of interest to mathematicians, physicists and chemists." (Soheila Emamyari and Mehdi Hassani, MathDL, May, 2008) "This remarkable book will be found interesting by scholars whose expertise lies in one or more of the following disciplines: philosophy, applied mathematics, theoretical, nuclear, and elementary particle physics, as well as physical, theoretical, and mathematical chemistry. ... the book Number Theory and the Periodicity of Matter is an exciting and nonstandard feat in the study of Nature. ... is recommended to the readers of MATCH Communications in Mathematical and in Computer Chemistry. Yet, its the main readers should be nuclear physicists." (Ivan Gutman, MATCH Communications in Mathematical and in Computer Chemistry, Vol. 60, 2008) "The authors discuss connections between number and matter and write about primes and the golden ratio somehow underlying nuclear physics. This book learnedly summarizes much scientific knowledge and history (mathematics, chemical physics, nuclear physics, cosmology), and may thus serve some readers independently of its main project. Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and up." (D. V. Feldman, Choice, Vol. 46 (2), October, 2008) "This is a book of special interest for particle physicists and chemists. ... this is a recommendable and interesting book." (H. Zimmermann, Crystallography Reviews, May, 2009) "The current volume has been written for readers at diverse levels of scientific and mathematical education as well as an exceptionally wide range of interests in natural phenomena. ... the current book a valuable contribution to one's library." (Joel F. Liebman, Molecular Crystals and Liquid Crystals, Vol. 503, June, 2009)
Synopsis
Of all the great innovations and intellectual achievements of mankind there is nothing that rivals the invention of counting and discovery of the number system. The way in which this discovery led to the development of abstract higher mathematics is the least of its merits, compared to the universal f- cination that the natural numbers hold for all people. Numbers are at the roots of magic, superstition, religion and science. Numerologists can int- pret great historical and cosmicevents, predict thefuture and explain human nature. Better informed, sophisticated people may frown upon and ridicule such claims, but the number of incidents that link numbers tophysical e?ects is simply too large to ignore as mere coincidence. It is in cases like these that the more respectable number theory is substituted for numerology. Although it is recognized as the most fundamental branch of mathem- ics, thevocabulary ofnumbertheoryincludesconcepts suchasprimenumber, perfect number, amicable number, square number, triangular number, py- midal number, and even magic number, none of which sounds too scienti?c and may suggest a di?erent status for the subject. Not surprisingly, number theory remains the pastime of amateurs and professionals alike all the way from the great Gauss down. It may be claimed that abstract number theory is more lofty than mundane science, never to be degraded into a servant of physical theory."
Synopsis
This book presents a fully scientific account of the use of the golden ratio. It explores the observation that stable nucleides obey a number theory based general law. The discovery described in this book could be of seminal significance, also in other fields where the golden ratio is known to be of fundamental importance.
Synopsis
Philosophers have long speculated that a link exists between natural numbers and the physical world... Pythagoras: "...all is number" John Dalton (1803): "...Atoms combine in simple numerical ratios..." Prout's hypothesis, published anonymously in 1815: "...the elements are different aggregates of the atoms of primordial hydrogen..." Alexandre Émile Beguyer de Chancourtois (1862): "...the properties of the elements are the properties of numbers..." William Harkins (1921): "...the ratio Z/(A - Z) never exceeds the value 0.62 in atomic species..." Within this book, readers with an interest in mathematics, science or natural philosophy will find this expectation addressed...
Table of Contents
Introduction Number Magic Periodic Structures Nuclear Synthesis Nuclidic Periodicity and Stability Hidden Symmetry Number Patterns Cosmic Structure Nuclear Structure and Properties Holistic Symmetry Number Theory Primer Introduction Numbers and Arithmetic Distribution of Prime Numbers Fibonacci Numbers Rational Fractions Modular Arithmetic Periodic Arithmetic Functions Periodic Table of the Elements Historical Development Theoretical Development Conclusion Structure of Atomic Nuclei Introduction Mass and Binding Energy Theoretical Models Particle Physics Elements of Cosmography Historical Cosmological Paradoxes Cosmological Models Chirality of Space-time The Vacuum Substratum The Periodic Laws Introduction Number Spiral and Periodic Laws General Periodic Function Hidden Symmetry Neutron Periodicity Nuclide Periodicity Periodicity and Number Theory Introduction Nuclear Synthesis by a-particle addition Nuclides in Farey Sequence Triangle of Stability Nuclear Stability Golden Parabola Properties of Atomic Matter Periodicity Nuclear Stability Nuclear Structure The Grand Pattern The Golden Ratio Nuclear Structure Five Domains Matter Transformation The Golden Excess Introduction Nuclide Periodicity Superfluidity Structure of the Nucleus Superconductivity Nuclear Stability Chemical Periodicity Introduction Electronegativity Chemical Bonding Epilogue