Unexpected Expectations: The Curiosities of a Mathematical Crystal Ball
"Apart from its general interest, this book contains much material which would be suitable for presentation to students at many levels of achievement. When full details are not included, there are adequate references to the literature, and there is a good balance between mathematics and qualitative description."—Peter Giblin,The Mathematical Gazette, March 2014"the book is highly recommended as Leonard Wapner has a great writing style that both comforts and challenges the reader in the world of confusing paradoxes. Most of the content was new to me, yet it was enjoyable and helped ‘un-solidify’ my belief in mathematical expectations. Get the book and read it if you enjoy being puzzled and discovering new things about what you thought you understood!"—MathNEXUS, March 2014"Expectation is an extension of the idea of average value, and is a basic tool of probability theory that underlies both the gaming and insurance industries.Unexpected Expectationsis a fascinating look at some of the counterintuitive aspects of this apparently simple concept."—Jim Stein, NewBooksinMath.com, May 2013"Every reader—unless they are encyclopedic consumers of all things related to mathematical expectation both in technical journals and the popular press—will find illuminating discussions of paradoxical probabilities that are new to them."—Andrew James Simoson,Mathematical Reviews, January 2013"… the thrust of the book is to illustrate the myriad of applications of the simple formula for expected value, independent of the mathematical justification that underlies them. At this,Unexpected Expectationsis a success. … an excellent contribution to popular mathematics writing."—Mark Bollman,MAA Reviews, July 2012