SpringfieldNewsSun.com

Springfield, Ohio — Dan Fleisch had reason to be worried about how well his newly published book would sell. He had heard that for every equation an author adds to a book, sales drop exponentially and Fleisch's book was based on nothing but equations.

So when his publisher called him last week to announce that the book, "A Student's Guide to Maxwell's Equations," was in its third printing after only six months, Fleisch was understandably excited.

"They said the first printing would last about 12 to 18 months," Fleisch said, smilling and shaking his head slowly in disbelief.

The feeling of disbelief actually began two years ago when Cambridge University Press, the world's oldest publisher, agreed to publish Fleisch's book on John Maxwell, whose equations are some of the most difficult to understand and yet are the basis for electromagnetic waves, radar and related technology, such as cell phones and the Internet. The feeling continued as Cambridge agreed to Fleisch's unconventional suggestions of creating modules for the book and Podcasts for an accompanying Website.

The result is a book that has earned five stars and rave reviews on Amazon.com., which has had trouble keeping the book stocked. Reviewers have called on Fleisch to expand his offerings to other equally-complex topics. Cambridge is also talking with Fleisch about a series of student guide books.

Such a series would befit Fleisch, who makes a special effort to equip his Wittenberg students for learning key concepts, even recording Podcasts that go over each section of the class.

While he ponders his next project, Fleisch is working on ways to animate calculus-related illustration to work with handheld readers, such as his new favorite toy — Amazon.com's Kendle. And why not? If it wasn't for Maxwell's Equations, Fleisch explains, technology such as radar, cell phones and Kindles would not exist.

Contact this reporter at (937) 328-0347 or kmori@coxohio.com.