Book reviews for "Smarandache,_Florentin" sorted by average review score:
Nonpoems
Published in Paperback by Erhus Univ Pr (1991)
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CRITICISM OF FLORENTIN SMARANDACHE'S WORK: NONPOEMS
The most avant-gardist book
This is the most experimental book of poetry I ever read.
Paul Jaspe
Dark snow : poems
Published in Unknown Binding by Erhus University Press ()
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Poetry of despair under tyranny
Florentin Smarandache is an amazing person, being very prolific in mathematics and literature, primarily verse. In my opinion, this is his best collection of poetry. I was moved by some of the passages, as he describes how the communist system in central Europe so utterly crushed the human spirit. A political refugee who fled the brutally illogical regime of Nicolae Ceausescu, he is clearly speaking from the depths of his being in these poems. Feelings of numbness, despair and absurdity are expressed as the people under those regimes did what they could to survive, even if it meant loosing their feelings.
The absurdity of the communist system in eastern Europe is no more apparent that when you realize it collapsed in a matter of days, once it was clear that force would not be used to maintain it. In this collection, you take a retrospective look at what life was like in that system for someone whose intellect was strong enough to rebel. This is one of my favorite collections of poetry.
The absurdity of the communist system in eastern Europe is no more apparent that when you realize it collapsed in a matter of days, once it was clear that force would not be used to maintain it. In this collection, you take a retrospective look at what life was like in that system for someone whose intellect was strong enough to rebel. This is one of my favorite collections of poetry.
Trickster's Famous Deeds (a trilogy of theatrical plays for children)
Published in Paperback by Anotimp (01 October, 2000)
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Ideal of older children
Pacala or Trickster, is a character in a series of three plays for children that will delight the young and old. In the first, he outsmarts an emperor and a vicious old bear to win the hand of a princess. The bear then joins him in his adventures and in the next, they meet and conquer a seven-headed dragon. Their final adventure is one where they meet an ogre and an alien from outer space.
These are tales where the dialog and actions are ideal for presentation to and by children that are approximately seven or older. While there are no violent scenes, some of the tricks that the Trickster plays on his opponents may not be understood by a very young audience. He is a creature who survives and bests his violent enemies by clever manipulation of their actions until they are overcome. It is the nature of these tricks that will appeal to the children.
As someone who strongly encourages his children to read, I also keep a close watch on the material that they read. Having read some of the highly recommended material that my eight and nine year olds bring from school, I find this book comparable to the best they have read and recommend it highly.
These are tales where the dialog and actions are ideal for presentation to and by children that are approximately seven or older. While there are no violent scenes, some of the tricks that the Trickster plays on his opponents may not be understood by a very young audience. He is a creature who survives and bests his violent enemies by clever manipulation of their actions until they are overcome. It is the nature of these tricks that will appeal to the children.
As someone who strongly encourages his children to read, I also keep a close watch on the material that they read. Having read some of the highly recommended material that my eight and nine year olds bring from school, I find this book comparable to the best they have read and recommend it highly.
Outer-Art : experimentation in paintings, drawings, drafts, computer desidn, collages, photos
Published in Paperback by Abaddaba (01 October, 2000)
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An interesting collection of experimental art
Dr. Smarandache is truly a renaissance man in the classical sense. His doctorate is in mathematics and he is the author of several books and many research papers. He has also written a prodigious amount of poetry and other verse and was nominated for the Nobel prize in literature in 1999. The founder of the paradoxist literary movement, he is a self-proclaimed anti-literary literary. Paradoxism is a form of writing where internal contradictions are used. The motto of the movement is "All is possible, the impossible too."
This book is a collection of his artwork, which he also describes as paradoxist. The works are of an avant-garde nature, with a great deal of symbolism and free form. Although I have spent my share of time in art galleries and have viewed works by the masters, I must confess that some of the work was beyond me. Which is probably what the author intended when he set out to create his experimental art. In my own defense, I did find much of the work enjoyable and occasionally I leafed back to re-examine a piece and contrast it with a later one.
The art in this book is often quite good and certainly comparable to some of the professional work that I have viewed. The book is one more contribution from a very talented man.
This book is a collection of his artwork, which he also describes as paradoxist. The works are of an avant-garde nature, with a great deal of symbolism and free form. Although I have spent my share of time in art galleries and have viewed works by the masters, I must confess that some of the work was beyond me. Which is probably what the author intended when he set out to create his experimental art. In my own defense, I did find much of the work enjoyable and occasionally I leafed back to re-examine a piece and contrast it with a later one.
The art in this book is often quite good and certainly comparable to some of the professional work that I have viewed. The book is one more contribution from a very talented man.
Smarandache's Outer-Art movement!
The author uses computer programs to paint and design. His album is an experimentation in paintings, drawings, drafts, collages, photos containing 100 colour + 15 black and white pictures. In a short preface, called ''Ultra-Modernism?'', he admits his artistic influence from the American Indian art, and states his mechanical/computer exotic and strange experiments - in accordance with Smarandache's Axiom that ''no theory is exempted from paradoxes'', such as: ''painting for non-painting's sake; not drawings, but our every day's scribblings; painting overlapping another painting; found art in the wasting basket of the art; fine ugly art (!); para-art and contra-art; art without art; and not finally 'scientific art'''.
Collected Papers, Vol. III
Published in Paperback by Abaddaba (2000)
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The book contains some of Smarandache's best ideas
While there are papers about many subjects in this book, approximately half the book deals with Neutrosophy, a new form of logic. As much philosophy as it is mathematics, neutrosophy can be used in many different areas. It has applications in fields as diverse as probability, set theory and quantum mechanics. Although it is new, neutrosophy is an extension of other forms of logic such as the three-valued logic developed by Jan Lukasiewicz and the fuzzy logic developed by Lofti Zadeh.
If you have an interest in different forms of logic, then those sections of the book will interest you.
The remaining papers deal with many other different areas of mathematics as well as a section on linguistic paradoxes. While not as interesting as those on neutrosophy, they still are worth reading. Florentin Smarandache is a source of many ideas in math, philosophy and literature, and some of his best are found in this book.
If you have an interest in different forms of logic, then those sections of the book will interest you.
The remaining papers deal with many other different areas of mathematics as well as a section on linguistic paradoxes. While not as interesting as those on neutrosophy, they still are worth reading. Florentin Smarandache is a source of many ideas in math, philosophy and literature, and some of his best are found in this book.
Definitions, Solved and Unsolved Problems, Conjectures, and Theorems in Number Theory and Geometry
Published in Paperback by Xiquan Publishing House (01 October, 2000)
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A collection of very hard problems
Florentin Smarandache is one of the most prolific creators of mathematics problems in the world today. I have written three books on his problems and am currently writing a fourth. Many others also regularly work on the problems he has posed, which are collectively called Smarandache Notions. However, this still leaves a tremendous number of problems unexamined and unresolved.
Smarandache is best known for presenting problems rather than resolving them and that is also the case in this book. Basically, it is a collection of problems where each is listed and followed by a short blurb and references to what work has been done. While some of the problems have been solved, most are very difficult and may never be resolved. For many, a resolution would lead to a great deal of fame, as it would require some extremely original mathematics. No less a mathematical powerhouse than the late Pal Erdos has stated that some of these problems may never be resolved.
Mathematicians live, die and build their careers by finding and resolving problems. Thus collection contains many that are hard, perhaps impossible, but certainly worth examining if you are looking for new challenges.
Smarandache is best known for presenting problems rather than resolving them and that is also the case in this book. Basically, it is a collection of problems where each is listed and followed by a short blurb and references to what work has been done. While some of the problems have been solved, most are very difficult and may never be resolved. For many, a resolution would lead to a great deal of fame, as it would require some extremely original mathematics. No less a mathematical powerhouse than the late Pal Erdos has stated that some of these problems may never be resolved.
Mathematicians live, die and build their careers by finding and resolving problems. Thus collection contains many that are hard, perhaps impossible, but certainly worth examining if you are looking for new challenges.
Neutrosophy : neutrosophic probability, set, and logic : analytic synthesis & synthetic analysis
Published in Unknown Binding by American Research Press ()
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New and unusual ideas in logic
As an experienced reviewer, I am always on the lookout for books containing new ideas. Florentin Smarandache has been a fire hose of a fountain of ideas and problems over the past several years and this latest effort continues that trend. Fuzzy logic is an extension of the classical two-valued logic and assigns truth values to expressions based on a continuum starting at zero and going through one. The degree of truth of the expression is then defined in terms of closeness to one, where one and zero are traditional true and false respectively. The degree to which an object can be considered an element of a set can also be assigned similar fuzzy values. This approach often is a more accurate representation of the real world and fuzzy models have been used with great success in many areas.
The fundamental principle of neutrosphy assigns to each object an ordered triple of numbers (t,i,f) where all are between zero and 100 inclusive and t + i + f =100. The three elements of the triple represent in order the values assigned to true, indeterminate and false and are interpreted as percentages. Clearly, this model contains both the fuzzy and classical approaches as subsets. Comparable structures can be created in the area of set theory.
In classical true/false logic, it is possible to define precisely 2n different n-ary operators for each n > 0. However, in the neutrosophic logic, there are uncountably infinite different n-ary operators for all n. While there is no question that most of these have little or no utility, it is quite likely that some will be of use in areas such as automated reasoning, neural networks and probabilistic models.
The writing of the book is often disjointed, as the author sometimes makes leaps from topic to topic without any attempt to provide a fluid transition. This makes it hard to read, but if you stick with it, you will find some stimulating ideas.
Although there are roots in the classical and fuzzy logics, the neutrosophic logic is as yet an undeveloped discipline. While I found the book hard to read at times, it is understandable and being exposed to the new thoughts and ideas made it worthwhile.
Published in Journal of Recreational Mathematics, reprinted with permission.
The fundamental principle of neutrosphy assigns to each object an ordered triple of numbers (t,i,f) where all are between zero and 100 inclusive and t + i + f =100. The three elements of the triple represent in order the values assigned to true, indeterminate and false and are interpreted as percentages. Clearly, this model contains both the fuzzy and classical approaches as subsets. Comparable structures can be created in the area of set theory.
In classical true/false logic, it is possible to define precisely 2n different n-ary operators for each n > 0. However, in the neutrosophic logic, there are uncountably infinite different n-ary operators for all n. While there is no question that most of these have little or no utility, it is quite likely that some will be of use in areas such as automated reasoning, neural networks and probabilistic models.
The writing of the book is often disjointed, as the author sometimes makes leaps from topic to topic without any attempt to provide a fluid transition. This makes it hard to read, but if you stick with it, you will find some stimulating ideas.
Although there are roots in the classical and fuzzy logics, the neutrosophic logic is as yet an undeveloped discipline. While I found the book hard to read at times, it is understandable and being exposed to the new thoughts and ideas made it worthwhile.
Published in Journal of Recreational Mathematics, reprinted with permission.
Only problems, not solutions!
Published in Unknown Binding by Xiquan Pub. House ()
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A collection of difficult problems that will test you
This book was one of the first of the collections of problems by Florentin Smarandache that I read. As the title implies, it contains only a listing of problems, with solutions the province of the reader. I spent a great deal of time working with these problems and managed to make progress on several of them. Like all good mathematics problems, complete solutions are elusive, difficult and fun to pursue. I enjoyed them so much that it was part of the motivation for me to write three books on the problems posed by Smarandache, which are known as Smarandache notions.
The problems are primarily in the area of number theory, which as the luminary Paul Erdos often said, makes them easy to state and understand, but hard to prove. If you are interested in problems that will frustrate and fascinate you, check out the ones in this book.
The problems are primarily in the area of number theory, which as the luminary Paul Erdos often said, makes them easy to state and understand, but hard to prove. If you are interested in problems that will frustrate and fascinate you, check out the ones in this book.
Prin tunele de cuvinte : poeme într-un vers = Through tunnels of words : one line poems
Published in Unknown Binding by Editura Haiku ()
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A collection of high quality one line verses
The beauty of poetry is that the principle of poetic license goes both directions. An author is free to use many different forms and the reader is free to interpret it in whatever way their mind operates. This book is a collection of one-line verses in both Romanian and English. The one sentence form is of course restrictive in that the thought must be expressed very quickly with no background construction. Each word is a critical part of the message so the word selection is very important.
Despite these restrictions, there is much that can be expressed in a single sentence, and Smarandache does that very well. In most cases, the verse is subject to more than one interpretation, which is what poetry is all about. Rigid precise language that cannot be interpreted differently by unique minds can rarely be considered poetry.
I enjoyed the book very much. This is a form of verse that must be honed to a fine edge to be effective, and in general the sentences are the combination of ambiguity and precision that make poetry the joy that it is.
Despite these restrictions, there is much that can be expressed in a single sentence, and Smarandache does that very well. In most cases, the verse is subject to more than one interpretation, which is what poetry is all about. Rigid precise language that cannot be interpreted differently by unique minds can rarely be considered poetry.
I enjoyed the book very much. This is a form of verse that must be honed to a fine edge to be effective, and in general the sentences are the combination of ambiguity and precision that make poetry the joy that it is.
Second International Anthology on Paradoxism (poems, prose, dramas, essays, letters)
Published in Paperback by Anotimp (01 October, 2000)
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An interesting collection of paradoxist literature
Paradoxism is a form of prose where the author creates sensible expressions by using contradictory phrases. Invented by the Rumanian author/mathematician Florentin Smarandache as a response to communist repression, it is a unique and interesting style of writing. Smarandache actively solicits contributions from readers for collections into books such as this.
Like all such collections, there is substantial variation in the quality of the material. As I read more of the paradoxist literature, my appreciation of it has grown. The best examples reach the level of good satire, with multiple meanings, the best of which will raise your brows. While most of the entries in this book do not reach that level, some do and make reading the book worthwhile.
If you like wordplay or deep satire, then you should investigate paradoxist literature. It is a unique form of expression that requires some thought to appreciate. ....
Like all such collections, there is substantial variation in the quality of the material. As I read more of the paradoxist literature, my appreciation of it has grown. The best examples reach the level of good satire, with multiple meanings, the best of which will raise your brows. While most of the entries in this book do not reach that level, some do and make reading the book worthwhile.
If you like wordplay or deep satire, then you should investigate paradoxist literature. It is a unique form of expression that requires some thought to appreciate. ....
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