The Proof and the Pudding: What Mathematicians, Cooks, and You Have in Common
In the preface of The Proof and the Pudding, author Jim Henle informs the reader, “[t]he goal of the book is to explore the two and to reveal their essential similarity. But of course, math and cooking aren’t the same. You don’t eat a number. You can’t take the square root of a muffin.”
What math and cooking have in common is that they are both crafts and involve problem solving. Henle then clues the reader in on the right attitude to have for problem solving: “I have a simple theory about problem solving. What you need is a split personality. You need, first of all, confidence . . . But you also need doubt. Once you have a solution, the confidence has to take a step back. You need to question your answer, worry about it . . . At the final stage, good problem solvers act as though they are sure there’s something wrong with their answers . . . The first personality is the most difficult to assume. You can’t simply decide to be confident. I offer my audience a substitute personality, which seems to work pretty well. I tell my students to be arrogant. Most of them can do this.”
The puzzles and games are uncommon and tricky but not impossible. Here’s Henle on the analysis of games. “Games area a recognized area of mathematics. But they are more than that. They are a perfect microcosm of mathematics.” Interestingly enough, Henle considers algebraic proof construction to be a game.
One of the games presented involves coin flips to implement a state machine for an unknown sequence. And one of the genres of puzzles presented is a cross between magic squares and Sudoku. Henle provides the winning strategy for Nim and for Nim fans offers a number of variations of that game.
Henle offers puzzles and games in different flavors of mathematics including algebra, geometry, and finiteness. He also offers a measure of self-reflection, telling the reader, “You haven’t said anything, but I know what you’re thinking. There’s supposed to be mathematics in this book and practically everything you’ve seen is either a doodle, a puzzle or a game. You want to know when I’m going to be serious. I have two answers for that. The first answer is that I’m not going to get serious . . . The second answer is that I am serious.” He also offers a self-reflection on mathematics, “The elements of mathematics has no location on Earth; they exist in our minds.”
And this reviewer is charmed.
There’s more to puzzles and games, Henle asks interesting questions, such as “Are there ethical questions in mathematics?” and also identifies celebrity mathematicians, Vi Hart, Danica McKellar, Keith Devlin (Martin Gardner gets a special mention), and also, celebrity chefs (Julia Child).
The food recipes are interspersed between puzzles and games, and to no surprise, are also offbeat, meant for cooks who like to experiment (or getting into the spirit of things, cooks who like to play) with different flavor combinations, for example there are several recipes that use blue cheese as the principal ingredient. There are also a number of recipes for making bread, the first of which is simple, while others have a few more steps and a few more ingredients. There are recipes as well, for cheesecake, raspberry tarts, apple pie, pizza, and pancakes. Many of these I would consider trying for myself, but would not attempt to prepare for my conservatively palated family.
To sum up, what the reader will find in The Proof and the Pudding to be an eccentric mix of puzzles, games, food recipes, and offbeat humor. With whimsical illustrations by Leon Steinmetz, The Proof and the Pudding is a rare treat. If you have an eccentric friend or relative who is mathematically or culinarily inclined, this is the perfect gift book.