Ethnomathematics of Negev Bedouins' Existence in Forms, Symbols and Geometric Patterns

Ethnomathematics of Negev Bedouins' Existence inForms, Symbols, and Geometric Patterns provokes a journey into the world ofNegev Bedouins and attests to the beauty and sophistication of mathematics thatoccurs naturally in their craftwork, structures, games, and throughout Bedouinlife. The major focus is Bedouin women s traditional craftwork by which theyreflect social and cultural activities in their weaving, embroidery, andsimilar pursuits. Their creations reveal mathematical ideas incorporated in embroiderycompositions in repeated patterns of flowers and geometric figures in varyingscales. The women use ground staked looms, stabilized by block-stones, to makemulti-color, repeating pattern strip-rugs in a process practiced forgenerations.  An image of this appears in the book s cover photo collage. Bedouin men construct dwellings, tents, desert wells, and such. They and theirchildren play games attuned to sand and other specific desert conditions. Theseactivities of Bedouin women, men, and children require mathematical thinkingand strategic reasoning to achieve desired outcomes. The book opens with a narrative of Bedouinhistory, followed by a brief overview of ethnomathematics, and concludes withdiscussion about bridging the gap between school mathematics experiences andthose outside school. It considers mathematically problematic situationsembedded in Bedouin sociocultural heritage likely to appeal to teachers for usewith school students.  The book is intended for a diverse audience fromBedouin communities in different countries to the general public andprofessionals, including ethnomathematicians and mathematics educators.  Numerous photographs document the examples ofBedouin ethnomathematics. They are the subject of considerable analysis andappear throughout the book.