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The Perfect Bet

How Science and Math Are Taking the Luck Out of Gambling

The Perfect Bet Open the full-size image

Contributors

By Adam Kucharski

Formats and Prices

Price

$26.99

Price

$34.99 CAD

Format

Format:

  1. Hardcover $26.99 $34.99 CAD
  2. ebook $13.99 $17.99 CAD
  3. Trade Paperback $18.99 $23.99 CAD

This item is a preorder. Your payment method will be charged immediately, and the product is expected to ship on or around February 23, 2016. This date is subject to change due to shipping delays beyond our control.

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For the past 500 years, gamblers-led by mathematicians and scientists-have been trying to figure out how to pull the rug out from under Lady Luck. In The Perfect Bet, mathematician and award-winning writer Adam Kucharski tells the astonishing story of how the experts have succeeded, revolutionizing mathematics and science in the process. The house can seem unbeatable. Kucharski shows us just why it isn’t. Even better, he demonstrates how the search for the perfect bet has been crucial for the scientific pursuit of a better world.

Genre:

  • Praise for The Perfect Bet:

    “An elegant and amusing account…Anyone planning to enter a casino or place an online bet would be advised to keep this book handy.”
    —Wall Street Journal

    “[THE PERFECT BET is] terrific: beautifully written, solidly researched and full of surprises. It's also practical. Even if you don't spend time at Las Vegas you'll be surprised by the clarity it will bring to your day.”
    —New York Times Numberplay blog

    “Kucharski delivers a fascinating read.”
    —Publishers Weekly

    “A lucid yet sophisticated look at the mathematics of probability as it's played out on gaming tables, arenas, and fields… gamblers and math buffs alike will enjoy it for its smart approach to real-world problems.”
    —Kirkus Reviews

    “Kucharski does a remarkable job of telling the story of how gambling has influenced science and science has influenced gambling. He manages to make it a good read while providing a scholarly underpinning.”
    —J. Doyne Farmer, Director of the Complexity Economics program at the Institute for New Economic Thinking at the Oxford Martin School

On Sale
Feb 23, 2016
Page Count
288 pages
Publisher
Basic Books
ISBN-13
9780465055951

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Adam Kucharski

About the Author

Adam Kucharski is a professor at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, where he works on analysis of infectious disease outbreaks, work that won him the 2023 Adams Prize for mathematics. He regularly appears in print and broadcast media and is the author of The Perfect Bet and The Rules of Contagion. He lives in Hertfordshire, UK. 

Learn more about this author