A history of mathematics that acknowledges the role of personality, culture - and luck With A TOUR OF THE CALCULUS (1996) Berlinski established his ability to explain mathematics clearly and colourfully Praise for INFINITE ASCENT: 'he can slash through the mathematical undergrowth with gusto' FT 'a snappy, marvellously readable volume ... brevity is the key: the book focuses on the milestones and big characters, sketches the rest, and does it all with clever humour, allusion and prose that keeps demanding attention' New Scientist 'For the mathematically inclined, this is a real treat' (Kirkus Reviews)

David Berlinski has taught mathematics, philosophy and English at Stanford, Rutgers and the City University of New York, and mathematics at the University of Paris. He has been a research fellow at the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis in Austria and the Institut des Hautes Etudes Scientifiques in France. His books have been translated into more than a dozen languages. He lives and works in Paris.