The Math of Life and Death: 7 Mathematical Principles That Shape Our Lives

From birthdays and birth rates to how we perceive the passing of time, mathematical patterns shape our lives. In this eye-opening and extraordinarily approachable book, mathematical biologist Kit Yates illuminates hidden principles that will help us understand and navigate the chaotic and often opaque surfaces of our world. In The Math of Life and Death, Yates takes us on a fascinating tour of everyday situations and grand-scale applications of mathematical concepts, including exponential growth and decay, optimization, statistics and probability, and number systems. Along the way, he reveals the mathematical undersides of controversies over DNA testing, medical screening results, and historical events such as the Chernobyl disaster and the Amanda Knox trial. Readers will finish this book with an enlightened perspective on the news, the law, medicine, and history, and will be better equipped to. make personal decisions and solve problems with math in mind, whether it's choosing the shortest checkout line at the grocery store or halting the spread of a deadly disease. Book jacket.