Beautiful Soul: The Life of Nash

Author: Sylvia Nasar [USA]
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2000-10-01
Features: If someone enjoys reading legendary stories, especially those of scientists, then this book is a must-read. In this touching biography, the author vividly recreates the life of a mathematical genius. His career was interrupted by schizophrenia, but after enduring 30 years of devastating mental illness, he miraculously recovered and was awarded the 1994 Nobel Prize in Economics for his foundational work in game theory in his youth. In this moving and vivid biography, Sylvia Nasar vividly recreates the life of a mathematical genius. His career was interrupted by schizophrenia, but after enduring 30 years of devastating mental illness, he miraculously recovered and was awarded the 1994 Nobel Prize in Economics for his foundational work in game theory in his youth. This book traces the brief and brilliant legendary life of John Forbes Nash Jr. before the age of 30, who solved a series of mathematically recognized problems and became a shining star. At the peak of his fame, Nash suffered a catastrophic mental breakdown and fell into terrible delusions. He resigned from his position at MIT and immersed himself in a series of strange fantasies, eventually becoming a dreamlike phantom figure at Princeton scribbling numerology madness on blackboards. He was almost forgotten by the world—until he came out of his madness and regained the world's attention. As an outstanding biography, it also compellingly describes the brilliant yet fragile nature of geniuses. This book won the 1998 American Book Review Biography Award and the 2000 American Mathematical Union Policy Committee Communication Award.