2. THE COSMIC COMPUTER- ABRIDGED EDITION - details

This book is an abridged version of the books which form part of a full course based on Vedic Mathematics. It will appeal to teachers, parents, pupils of all ages from eight upwards and anyone who enjoys the beauty and precision of mathematics. An excellent introduction to the Vedic system.

The paperback book is beautifully illustrated with a striking full-colour picture of a painting on the front cover and is almost A4 in size. It is written to the student, has many examples and exercises with answers and over 200 pages. 1997; Authors: Kenneth Williams & Mark Gaskell; ISBN 0 9531782 0 X.
Price $24 (including postage).

Reviews

"This book is a delight" - Andrew Nicholas, Maths teacher

"Congratulations . . . a beautiful exposition of the essential elements of Vedic Mathematics" - Brian McEnery Ph.D.

"My nine year old daughter always looks forward to working from the book. She is not particularly keen on maths at school but she enjoys the book so much she doesn't want to stop" - Bernard Bence

"This book is really well set out and very easy to read" - Peter Harrison, Bookseller

 

 

INTRODUCTION TO THE ABRIDGED COSMIC COMPUTER BOOK

 

This book is an abridged version of the books which form part of the Vedic Mathematics course written for schools which covers the National Curriculum for England and Wales.

This shortened version is a response to a demand for some of the Vedic Mathematics content of the course to be made available in a single volume. Consequently it contains much of the material which is especially original, but it is not intended as a complete course. So, for example, there is no introduction to decimals or algebra. The book covers a considerable range from simple addition and subtraction to quadratic equations. There are plenty of exercises to practice the easy Vedic methods and answers are included.

The original course is aimed at 11-14 year old pupils and is a complete course covering Arithmetic, Algebra, Geometry and Statistics. It also includes, in the Teacher's Guides, hundreds of specially designed mental tests, about 45 extension sheets, teacher's notes, revision tests, games, worksheets etc. and a Unified Field Chart which shows the development of the parts of mathematics in relation to the whole.

Vedic mathematics was rediscovered from ancient Indian texts, called the Vedas, by Bharati Krsna Tirthaji (1884-1960) between 1911 and 1918. His book 'Vedic Mathematics', 1960, is currently available and the Cosmic Computer course has been developed over many years from this work.

Anyone familiar with the Vedic system will be aware of the remarkable techniques: 'difficult' problems or huge sums which can be solved immediately by the Vedic method. These striking and beautiful methods are part of a complete system of mathematics which is far more systematic than the modern 'system'. Vedic Mathematics brings out the coherent and unified structure of mathematics and the methods are complementary, direct and easy.

The simplicity of Vedic Mathematics means that calculations can be carried out mentally and this is very much encouraged in the course. The Vedic system develops creativity in the students partly through encouraging mental calculation; students like to devise their own methods. The Vedic system also cultivates intuition so that both hemispheres of the brain can work together- having a conscious proof or explanation of a method or result is not essential (although all methods shown in the course are fully explained). Students are shown general methods and also special methods which apply in special cases. This means they do not rigidly have to follow a certain procedure but have a choice and can invent their own methods. As in life every problem is unique and invites its own method of solution.

The use of the Vedic formulae or Sutras is a great help. They describe the various ways that the mind can be used (extending, reversing, combining ideas, generalizing etc.) and thereby help in developing these faculties. It is not necessary for the pupil or teacher to learn these- they become familiar after a while and seem quite natural.

The title of this book, The Cosmic Computer, is from Maharishi Mahesh Yogi who said some years ago that the Sutras of Vedic Mathematics are the software for the Cosmic Computer: it is the Cosmic Computer that determines the outcome of every event in the universe, according to the laws of nature.

Vedic mathematics is being taught in some schools with great success. Pupils progress faster and very much enjoy their work under this system, which has rightly been called "Mathematics with Smiles".

 

"The Cosmic Computer - Abridged Edition" - Contents

CHAPTER TITLES 

1 DIGIT SUMS AND THE NINE-POINT CIRCLE 
2 THE DIGIT SUM CHECK [checking sums using digit sums] 
3 ADDITION AND SUBTRACTION [some special methods] 
4 DOUBLING AND HALVING 
5 NUMBER SPLITTING 
6 ALL FROM 9 AND THE LAST FROM 10 
7 BAR NUMBERS AND SUBTRACTION 
8 NIKHILAM MULTIPLICATION [for numbers near a base] 
9 ON THE FLAG [calculating from left to right] 
10 BY ONE MORE THAN THE ONE BEFORE [special multiplication devices] 
11 DIVISIBILITY 
12 GENERAL MULTIPLICATION 
13 ALGEBRAIC MULTIPLICATION 
14 SQUARING 
15 EQUATIONS 
16 VERTICALLY AND CROSSWISE [combining fractions, equation of a line] 
17 SPECIAL DIVISION [dividing by numbers near a base] 
18 RECURRING DECIMALS [converting fractions to decimals] 
19 FURTHER MULTIPLICATION 
20 SQUARES, CUBES AND ROOTS 
21 STRAIGHT DIVISION [general division] 
22 AUXILIARY FRACTIONS [further recurring decimals] 
23 SIMULTANEOUS EQUATIONS 
24 DIVISIBILITY AND SIMPLE OSCULATORS 
25 SQUARE ROOTS [general method] 
26 QUADRATIC EQUATIONS 
27 TRIPLES [introduction to Pythagorean triples]

 

"The Cosmic Computer - Abridged Edition" - Back Cover

The remarkable system of Vedic Mathematics was rediscovered from ancient Vedic texts earlier this century. The Vedic system with its direct, easy and flexible approach forms a complete system of mental mathematics (though the methods can also be written down) and brings out the naturally coherent and unified structure of mathematics. Many of the features and techniques of this unique system are truly amazing in their efficiency and originality.

Being a mental system, Vedic Mathematics encourages creativity and innovation. Mental mathematics increases mental agility, improves memory, the ability to hold ideas in the mind and promotes confidence, as well as being of great practical use.
With the growing popularity of Vedic Mathematics in schools, a full Vedic Mathematics course, The Cosmic Computer course, has now been written which covers the National Curriculum Key Stage 3. This book is a shortened version of that course, containing the most striking of the Vedic methods. Though written for 11-14 year old pupils some of the earlier chapters would be appropriate for younger children and all of the material is suitable for older students as the content is so original. The coherence and freshness of the Vedic system will appeal to anyone who enjoys the beauty and precision of mathematics.