ABSTRACT
The positive whole numbers, N = {1, 2, 3, …} are probably the most important and fundamental objects in mathematics. They are familiar to almost everyone, because they are used to count and measure everyday things such as spoons, money and distances. Life as we know it would be impossible without the positive integers and we use them in innumerable ways – telephone numbers, football scores, car registration, bank notes, dates of the months and years and in many other situations.
The first chapter is concerned with number theory, the name mathematicians give to the study of the positive integers or the natural numbers, as some people call them. One of the guiding principles of lateral thinking is experimentation and that Mathematics is an Experimental Science (MIAES) and many of the problems can be solved on the basis of experimentation.
The four fundamental operations of arithmetic – addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division are never very far away from mathematical problems, and these are all evident in Chapter 1. They are followed by powers, factorials, summations and final digits, and moving up the scale a little, e, pi, and the famous Fibonacci sequence make their appearance.
