Marcel Danesi 
The Liar Paradox and the Towers of Hanoi 
The 10 Greatest Math Puzzles of All Time

A walk through history’s most mind-boggling puzzles

Ever since the Sphinx asked his legendary riddle of Oedipus, riddles, conundrums, and puzzles of all sizes have kept humankind perplexed and amused. The Liar Paradox and the Towers of Hanoi takes die-hard puzzle mavens on a tour of the world’s most enduringly intriguing braintwisters, from K?nigsberg’s Bridges and the Hanoi Towers to Fibonacci’s Rabbits, the Four Color Problem, and the Magic Square. Each chapter introduces the basic puzzle, discusses the mathematics behind it, and includes exercises and answers plus additional puzzles similar to the one under discussion. Here is a veritable kaleidoscope of puzzling labyrinths, maps, bridges, and optical illusions that will keep aficionados entertained for hours.

Marcel Danesi (Etobicoke, ON, Canada) is the author of Increase Your Puzzle IQ

Table of Content

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS.

Introduction.

1. The Riddle of the Sphinx.

2. Alcuin’s River-Crossing Puzzle.

3. Fibonacci’s Rabbit Puzzle.

4. Euler’s Königsberg Bridges Puzzle.

5. Guthrie’s Four-Color Problem.

6. Lucas’s Towers of Hanoi Puzzle.

7. Loyd’s Get Off the Earth Puzzle.

8. Epimenides’ Liar Paradox.

9. The Lo Shu Magic Square.

10. The Cretan Labyrinth.

ANSWERS AND EXPLANATIONS.

GLOSSARY.

INDEX.

About the author

MARCEL DANESI is the author of Increase Your Puzzle IQ (Wiley) and The Puzzle Instinct, among many other books on semiotic topics. He is Professor of Semiotics and Linguistics at the University of Toronto and Director of the Program in Semiotics and Communication Theory. Danesi has also been cross-appointed as a professor of education, having established a continuing studies mathematics program for students with difficulties in this subject.