Remembering Martin Gardner, Mathematical Magician

“I’m strictly a journalist.”

– Martin Gardner

Martin Gardner had no formal mathematical training. A newspaper reporter, publicist, freelancer for Esquire, caseworker, magician, skeptic, Navy sailor, and most famously, “Mathematical Games” columnist for Scientific American, Gardner displayed a boundless energy and enthusiasm for intellectual inquiry. A tireless advocate for science, his popular books and articles painstakingly argue against the dangers of pseudoscience in all forms.

On Saturday, Gardner passed away at the age of 95 in Norman, OK. TSoTP takes a look back.

The Martin Gardner Interview Part 3

Continuing from last Thursday – Don Albers’ long interview with math puzzle legend Martin Gardner. Yes, he once edited a magazine for girls. Newcomers: start from the beginning here >> Humpty Dumpty’s Gardner: That’s right, it’s not until I started selling stories to Esquire that I thought I could make a decent living as a [...]