Japanese writing intermingles three different sets of characters, making it difficult to adapt to new technology. Unger looks at why the Japanese have not reformed their orthography and specifically the efforts at script reform that took place after the Second World War, and how and why that movement was defeated.

Aida Yasuaki (1847-1817) was one of the most prolific originators of the wasan tradition that produced them. Instead of presenting and solving problems using modern techniques, Unger presents Aida's own solutions, transcribing his calculations into familiar mathematical notation, highlighting connections between Aida's work and both the mathematics of today and aspects of Japanese cultural history.

The geometry problems colorfully inscribed on sangaku plaques that survive in shrines and temples throughout Japan have long fascinated those who appreciate the beauty of geometric figures and enjoy challenging puzzles. Aida Yasuaki (1847-1817) was one of the most prolific originators of the wasan tradition that produced them. Instead of presenting and solving problems using modern techniques, Unger presents Aida's own solutions, transcribing his calculations into familiar mathematical notation, highlighting connections between Aida's work and both the mathematics of today and aspects of Japanese cultural history.

During the period of national isolation, a mathematical tradition called wasan flourished in Japan. Though virtually unknown to Europeans before the Meiji Restoration, its practitioners, the wasanka, produced some results comparable to (and sometimes in advance of) those of mathematicians of the European Enlightment. This volume, a companion to Unger's earlier translation of solutions by Aida Yasuaki (1747-1817), focuses on problems that Aida most likely used as a teacher. Unger explains the reasons for believing this, and sheds further light on the intellectual milieu in which Aida worked by discussing other books by Aida, including one in which he describes Dutch techniques of navigation.