Works consulted for the history-of-mathematics interludes on this site. Citations in the atoms point here in the form (Surname).

  • Carl B. Boyer, Uta C. MerzbachA History of Mathematics. Wiley (2011). General reference history, from the Babylonians to the 20th century. Main source for most interludes.
  • Morris KlineMathematical Thought from Ancient to Modern Times. Oxford University Press (1972). Three volumes: the development of mathematical ideas with strong attention to conceptual context.
  • Victor J. KatzA History of Mathematics: An Introduction. Addison-Wesley (2009). Broad, up-to-date textbook, attentive to non-European mathematics.
  • Dirk J. StruikA Concise History of Mathematics. Dover (1987). Classic compact synthesis.
  • William DunhamJourney through Genius: The Great Theorems of Mathematics. Wiley (1990). The great theorems told as episodes, with original proofs.
  • Eric Temple BellMen of Mathematics. Simon & Schuster (1937). Biographical (dramatized) portraits of the great mathematicians.
  • Reviel NetzA New History of Greek Mathematics. Cambridge University Press (2022). A modern rereading of Greek mathematics.
  • J. L. BerggrenEpisodes in the Mathematics of Medieval Islam. Springer (2003). Source for al-Khwārizmī, al-Karaji, Omar Khayyām, al-Battānī, al-Tūsī.
  • Kim PlofkerMathematics in India. Princeton University Press (2009). Source for Aryabhata, the Indian origin of the sine, and the numeral system.
  • John StillwellMathematics and Its History. Springer (2010). History organized by mathematical theme, with exercises.
  • Clifford A. PickoverThe Math Book: From Pythagoras to the 57th Dimension. Sterling (2009). 250 milestones, one per page.
  • Eli Maore: The Story of a Number. Princeton University Press (2007). The story of the number e, compound interest and logarithms.
  • Florian CajoriA History of Mathematical Notations. Open Court (1928). Canonical source on the origin of mathematical symbols (+, −, =, ×, exponents).
  • Stephen M. StiglerThe History of Statistics: The Measurement of Uncertainty before 1900. Harvard University Press (1986). Source for de Moivre, Gauss, Laplace, Quételet, Galton and the normal curve.
  • Bruno D’AmoreArte e matematica / Dante e la matematica. Italian popular works on mathematics, art and culture.
  • Lucio RussoLa rivoluzione dimenticata. Feltrinelli. On Hellenistic science.

Dates in parentheses indicate the edition consulted. Citations are at author-and-work level; no page numbers are given.