Book: History of Mathematics since the 20th Century

[eyec]

Hi all,

Can anyone recommend a good book on the history of mathematics in very recent times (i.e. since the 20th century, specifically including the mathematical beginnings of computer science, game theory, chaos theory, complex systems, recent developments in stochastics etc.etc.)?
Most history of math books will cover only the classical history through the 19th century, or through the 1920s. Some add a very short section on more recent developments that reads more like an outlook. Monographs on more specific topics will sometimes add a section on the development of this branch of mathematics, for instance, a game theory textbook will typically include a section on the history of game theory, without, however, relating this to contemporary developments in other fields of mathematics even though many scientists were working on more than one topic (consider John von Neumann).

The closest thing to such a book on the recent history of mathematics I could find is Piergiorgio Odifreddi's "Mathematical Century: The 30 Greatest Problems of the Last 100 Years" which is not exactly a history of math book but rather a discussion of specific problems that were discussed or solved in the 20th century.

Are there good books about the recent history of mathematics? Can somebody recommend one / some?

Thanks ...

 

[fresh_42]

It lies a bit in the nature of the word historical that recent developments are usually not covered. Computer science, i.e. algorithm theory, the theory of languages etc. began in the 50's of last century, chaos theory even later, and game theory can probably be found in books about economy. All those areas still count as "recent". Plus they haven't developed yet in ordinary mathematics. They are still single areas of research or became part of external sciences (economy, computer science). Both reasons don't predestines them for mathematical history. I assume there are better chances to address them individually, e.g. algorithmics, than to search for a general historical treatment.