MathFiction: Pascal's Wager (Nancy Rue)

a list compiled by Alex Kasman (College of Charleston)

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Pascal's Wager (2001)

Nancy Rue
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A math graduate student working in K-theory meets a young philosophy professor who challenges her atheistic beliefs with Blaise Pascal's famous "wager".

Mathematics takes a back seat to theology in this Christian novel. However, the reader gets to hear the protagonist's explanation of why she enjoys studying math, and shares her frustration when the result she is working on is "scooped" just before she completes her thesis.

Thanks to Hauke Reddmann for bringing this work to my attention.

More information about this work can be found at www.amazon.com.
(Note: This is just one work of mathematical fiction from the list. To see the entire list or to see more works of mathematical fiction, return to the Homepage.)

Works Similar to Pascal's Wager

According to my `secret formula', the following works of mathematical fiction are similar to this one:

36 Arguments for the Existence of God by Rebecca Goldstein
Contact by Carl Sagan
Mister God, This is Anna by Fynn
Alexander's Infinity by Lidija Stankovikj
The Elusive Chauffeur by David H. Brown
The Number of Love (The Codebreakers) by Roseanna M. White
Bees by Anonymous
Continuums by Robert Carr
Flowers Stained with Moonlight by Catherine Shaw
A Certain Ambiguity: A Mathematical Novel by Gaurav Suri / Hartosh Singh Bal

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Categories:

Genre
Motif	Academia, Proving Theorems, Female Mathematicians, Romance, Religion,
Topic	Geometry/Topology/Trigonometry, Algebra/Arithmetic/Number Theory,
Medium	Novels,

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Where are the new works of mathematical fiction?: As you can see from this chronological listing, this database includes many works of mathematical fiction for each year from 1990 to 2025. Strangely, only two are listed for 2026, so far. Either less mathematical fiction is being published than in previous years or I'm just having more trouble finding it. If you know of any works of fiction that should be added to this list, especially recently published ones, please let me know. (Keep in mind that I do not include self-published works or children's fiction that just covers elementary mathematical concepts.) Thanks!

(Maintained by Alex Kasman, College of Charleston)