author : George Polya

Though Professor Polya, an eminent mathematician, uses specific examples taken largely from geometry, his principal aim is to teach a method which can be applied to the solution of other problems, more or less technical. The particular solution of a particular problem is, for his purposes, of minor importance. The approach used in heuristic reasoning is constant regardless of its subject, and can be expressed in simple but incisive questions: “What is the unknown? What are the data? What is the condition? Do you know a related problem?” Deftly, Polya the teacher shows us how to strip away the irrelevancies which clutter our thinking and guides us toward a clear and productive habit of mind.

The “Short Dictionary of Heuristic” included in How to Solve It supplies the history, techniques, and terminology of heuristic with brilliant precision, and there is a concluding section of nineteen Problems, Hints, and Solutions.