Book Description
The theory of elliptic curves involves a pleasing blend of algebra, geometry, analysis, and number theory. "Rational Points on Elliptic Curves" stresses this interplay as it develops the basic theory, thereby providing an opportunity for advance undergraduates to appreciate the unity of modern mathematics. At the same time, every effort has been made to use only methods and results commonly included in the undergraduate curriculum. This accessibility, the informal writing style, and a wealth of exercises make "Rational Points on Elliptic Curves" an ideal introduction for students at all levels who are interested in learning about Diophantine equations and arithmetic geometry.
Customer Reviews:
Friendly, but probably not the best.......2005-11-25
The virtue of this book is its leisurely style; and the subject is very attractive as well. The idea that lies behind this whole theory is the way in which one imposes an arithmetic on the points of an elliptic curve. There is much to be said about this: the whole thing becomes a group, the rational points form a finitely generated group, etc. That's chapters 1-3. In chapters 4-5 we finally get to some number-theoretical applications. First applications to factorisation (and thus to cryptography). Then chapter 5 is on "integer points on cubic curves", which sounds nice and classical, but things quickly turn quite messy. And finally there is chapter 6, on complex multiplication and Kronecker's Jugendtraum, for those who are interested in this extension field business that everybody seems to love. One could certainly read chapter 1-3 as a very elementary and easy-going introduction to the basics of elliptic curve arithmetic. I think the applications are treated better elsewhere, in Koblitz's books for instance.
Full of useful information and a great guide to intuition.......2000-07-29
The authors do a fantastic job of introducing elliptic curves for individuals and students interested in this area. Because of the importance of elliptic curves to cryptography, in integrable models in statistical mechanics, in superstring theory in physics, in mirror symmetry in algebraic geometry, in mechanics in the solution of the spinning top, and even in financial engineering, this book will be useful in building intuition about these interesting objects. Be careful in reading this book though...the theory of elliptic curves is beautiful and addicting, and you will want no doubt to read more about them after finishing it. There are two other books by Silverman that will alleviate the monkey on your back for more knowledge about elliptic curves. Happy reading......
Excellent Introduction to Elliptic Curves.......1998-08-24
This wonderful book is an excellent introduction to elliptic curves over the rational numbers. It is self-contained and easily accessible, but still takes the reader quite far, thus giving an undergraduate reader some exciting glimpes of deeper mathematics. This book is ideally suited as a text book for an undergraduate course (I have myself enjoyed it as a course), but is written in a lively style that also makes it fun to read on one's own. It covers such topics as the Nagell-Lutz Theorem, Mordell's Theorem over rational numbers, elliptic curves over finite fields and reduction modulo p, Thue's Theorem and diophantine approximation, and even an introduction to complex multiplication. An appendix provides the reader with a basic background on projective geometry. This book is a must for any student wanting to see beyond the ordinary coursework, and at the same time provides a natural stepping stone to a more advanced treatment of the subject, such as "The Arithmetic of Elliptic Curves", also by Silverman, which has become pretty much the standard text on the subject.
Book Description
Taking a direct route, Essential Topology brings the most important aspects of modern topology within reach of a second-year undergraduate student. Based on courses given at the University of Wales Swansea, it begins with a discussion of continuity and, by way of many examples, leads to the celebrated "Hairy Ball theorem" and on to homotopy and homology: the cornerstones of contemporary algebraic topology.
While containing all the key results of basic topology, Essential Topology never allows itself to get mired in details. Instead, the focus throughout is on providing interesting examples that clarify the ideas and motivate the student, reflecting the fact that these are often the key examples behind current research.
With chapters on:
- continuity and topological spaces
- deconstructionist topology
- the Euler number
- homotopy groups including the fundamental group
- simplicial and singular homology, and
- fibre bundles
Essential Topology contains enough material for two semester-long courses, and offers a one-stop-shop for undergraduate-level topology, leaving students motivated for postgraduate study in the field, and well-prepared for it.
Customer Reviews:
A pleasure to read.......2007-05-15
I have a major in math, many years ago. I have moved into economics, but miss the elegance of math, hence I decided to revisit some old topics, and started with topology. As a student we used lecture notes and no real textbook, so my choice now was this textbook. It is a pure pleasure to read. I wish we had used it as a text book when I studied.
The topics are well motivated. Crossley does a good job in explaining why we should care about these particular lemmas and theorems. The proofs are usually elegant. I find the estetic pleasures a good math book should provide.
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Elementary Geometry of Algebraic Curves: An Undergraduate Introduction
C. G. Gibson
Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
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ASIN: 0521641403 |
Book Description
Here is an introduction to plane algebraic curves from a geometric viewpoint, designed as a first text for undergraduates in mathematics, or for postgraduate and research workers in the engineering and physical sciences. The book is well illustrated and contains several hundred worked examples and exercises. From the familiar lines and conics of elementary geometry the reader proceeds to general curves in the real affine plane, with excursions to more general fields to illustrate applications, such as number theory. By adding points at infinity the affine plane is extended to the projective plane, yielding a natural setting for curves and providing a flood of illumination into the underlying geometry. A minimal amount of algebra leads to the famous theorem of Bezout, while the ideas of linear systems are used to discuss the classical group structure on the cubic.
Customer Reviews:
Does what it claims.......2001-05-04
We used this for a class introducing algebraic geometry. It's necessary to know linear algebra and multivariable calculus, and very helpful to know groups, rings, and fields. The book keeps it's feet on the ground (equal distribution of computation and abstraction in problems). Some examples throughout. Very good as an introduction.
Book Description
Algebraic Geometry is the study of systems of polynomial equations in one or more variables, asking such questions as: Does the system have finitely many solutions, and if so how can one find them? And if there are infinitely many solutions, how can they be described and manipulated? The solutions of a system of polynomial equations form a geometric object called a variety; the corresponding algebraic object is an ideal. There is a close relationship between ideals and varieties which reveals the intimate link between algebra and geometry. Written at a level appropriate to undergraduates, this book covers such topics as the Hilbert Basis Theorem, the Nullstellensatz, invariant theory, projective geometry, and dimension theory. The algorithms to answer questions such as those posed above are an important part of algebraic geometry. This book bases its discussion of algorithms on a generalization of the division algorithm for polynomials in one variable that was only discovered in the 1960's. Although the algorithmic roots of algebraic geometry are old, the computational aspects were neglected earlier in this century. This has changed in recent years, and new algorithms, coupled with the power of fast computers, have let to some interesting applications, for example in robotics and in geometric theorem proving. In preparing a new edition of
Ideals, Varieties and
Algorithms the authors present an improved proof of the Buchberger Criterion as well as a proof of Bezout's Theorem. Appendix C contains a new section on Axiom and an update about Maple , Mathematica and REDUCE.
Customer Reviews:
Symbolic computation.......2003-08-29
This book explains and illustrates the algorithms used by symbolic math packages such as Mathematica, Maple, CoCoA, MatLab, MuPAD,... to solve problems involving polynomials in many variables, and along the way teaches the elements of real algebraic geometry-- most mathematics texts concentrate on the complex-variable version. It is not just for undergraduates; electrical engineers, for instance, should see it. Lots of pictures!
Easiest introduction to Algebraic Geometry.......2003-04-23
This is the easiest introduction to algebraic geometry and commutative algebra, the authors had done a great job in writing a book that assume very little from the readers. To learn some algebraic geometry, you can either start with this book, or you can spend a year to read a lot of background materials in algebra and then go to a Graduate Text like Harris' book. Of course, if you want to be an expert in algebra, you eventually need a lot of background, what this book can help you is to offer you a quick start, much quicker than you would ever imagine.
Straightforward and lucidly written.......2002-04-09
Having just finished using this text in the course of an undergraduate seminar, I can attest to the fact that the authors' style is outstanding - they are able to synthesize an enormous amount of material in this volume and present it in a manner that is highly accessible to almost all students of mathematics. The presentation of important theorems (for example, Hilbert's Nullstellensatz and Basis Theorem) along with just the right amount of copncrete examples makes for a book of superb quality. All-around, I highly recommend this volume to anyone who has an interest in learning about Algebraic Geometry.
Good book.......2001-05-27
I don't have the second edition of this book but did read the first, and the authors do a fine job of introducing the reader to the computational side of algebraic geometry. I will forego a chapter by chapter review therefore, but no doubt the second edition (which I do not own) is as well-written as the first. I would recommend it to anyone interested in the many applications of algebraic geometry and to those who need to understand how to compute things in algebraic geometry. The good thing about this book is that it gives a concrete flavor to a highly abstract subject. Algebraic geometry, through its applications to coding theory, cryptography, and computer graphics, is fast becoming the subject to learn. It is no longer just an esoteric, high-brow subject but one that is taking on major importance in the information age. Even without applications though it is a fascinating subject, and readers will get a taste of this in this book.
The best book on the topic.......2001-01-26
I learned the basics of Groebner bases from this book and its the best introductory book on this topic. Authors have explained all concepts with the help of examples which makes it readable for people from other fields also. It also talks about applications of Groebner bases to other fields. The book gives lot of exercises which help in understanding the contents more. I recommend that if you wish to learn Algebraic Geometry and Groebner bases then this is the book to start with.
Book Description
Algebraic geometry is, essentially, the study of the solution of equations and occupies a central position in pure mathematics. With the minimum of prerequisites, Dr. Reid introduces the reader to the basic concepts of algebraic geometry, including: plane conics, cubics and the group law, affine and projective varieties, and nonsingularity and dimension. He stresses the connections the subject has with commutative algebra as well as its relation to topology, differential geometry, and number theory. The book contains numerous examples and exercises illustrating the theory.
Customer Reviews:
baked just right for the first timers !.......2000-07-12
There are many good books on the subject of algebraic geometry, so what was the use of one more - asks the author in the preface to this book. But there are none -at the UG level- which for the first time reveal to the younger mathematicians the secrets of this vast and growing subject. The book treats every new concept with the rigour that keeps in mind the level it is meant for, and yet maintains its mathematical "beauty" - setting firmly the basics for those who would want to take up this course at an advanced level as well as keeping the more casual mathematics reader interested.
Book Description
Algebraic Geometry is the study of systems of polynomial equations in one or more variables, asking such questions as: Does the system have finitely many solutions, and if so how can one find them? And if there are infinitely many solutions, how can they be described and manipulated?
The solutions of a system of polynomial equations form a geometric object called a variety; the corresponding algebraic object is an ideal. There is a close relationship between ideals and varieties which reveals the intimate link between algebra and geometry. Written at a level appropriate to undergraduates, this book covers such topics as the Hilbert Basis Theorem, the Nullstellensatz, invariant theory, projective geometry, and dimension theory.
The algorithms to answer questions such as those posed above are an important part of algebraic geometry. Although the algorithmic roots of algebraic geometry are old, it is only in the last forty years that computational methods have regained their earlier prominence. New algorithms, coupled with the power of fast computers, have led to both theoretical advances and interesting applications, for example in robotics and in geometric theorem proving.
In addition to enhancing the text of the second edition, with over 200 pages reflecting changes to enhance clarity and correctness, this third edition of Ideals, Varieties and Algorithms includes: A significantly updated section on Maple in Appendix C; Updated information on AXIOM, CoCoA, Macaulay 2, Magma, Mathematica and SINGULAR; A shorter proof of the Extension Theorem presented in Section 6 of Chapter 3.
From the 2nd edition: "I consider the book to be wonderful. ... The exposition is very clear, there are many helpful pictures, and there are a great many instructive exercises, some quite challenging ... offers the heart and soul of modern commutative and algebraic geometry." The American Mathematical Monthly
Book Description
Conics and Cubics is an accessible introduction to algebraic curves. Its focus on curves of degree at most three keeps results tangible and proofs transparent. Theorems follow naturally from high school algebra and two key ideas, homogeneous coordinates and intersection multiplicities.
By classifying irreducible cubics over the real numbers and proving that their points form Abelian groups, the book gives readers easy access to the study of elliptic curves. It includes a simple proof of Bezout’s Theorem on the number of intersections of two curves.
The book is a text for a one-semester course. The course can serve either as the one undergraduate geometry course taken by mathematics majors in general or as a sequel to college geometry for prospective or current teachers of secondary school mathematics. The only prerequisite is first-year calculus.
The new edition additionally discusses the use of power series to parametrize curves and analyze intersection multiplicities and envelopes.
Customer Reviews:
Welcome Addition to the Literature.......2000-06-11
This book may be the most elementary introduction to algebraic geometry. Still it is roughly senior level and unlike the review above I am not sure that it is suitable for students in secondary education. Nonetheless, it fills a niche that has been largely vacant in the undergraduate literature and I recommend it to serious students and undergraduates alike.
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Geometry: Plane and Fancy (Undergraduate Texts in Mathematics)
David A. Singer
Manufacturer: Springer
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ASIN: 0387983066 |
Book Description
GEOMETRY: Plane and Fancy offers students a fascinating tour through parts of geometry they are unlikely to see in the rest of their studies while, at the same time, anchoring their excursions to the well known parallel postulate of Euclid. The author shows how alternatives to Euclid's fifth postulate lead to interesting and different patterns and symmetries. In the process of examining geometric objects, the author incorporates the algebra of complex (and hypercomplex) numbers, some graph theory, and some topology. Nevertheless, the book has only mild prerequisites. Readers are assumed to have had a course in Euclidean geometry (including some analytic geometry and some algebra) at the high school level. While many concepts introduced are advanced, the mathematical techniques are not. Singer's lively exposition and off-beat approach will greatly appeal both to students and mathematicians. Interesting problems are nicely scattered throughout the text. The contents of the book can be covered in a one-semester course, perhaps as a sequel to a Euclidean geometry course.
Customer Reviews:
Bland.......2007-03-25
We found this book rather dull and also annoying in that it leaves out many proofs ("it turns out that...", "Gauss showed that...", etc.). We would not have bothered writing a review had we not been provoked by a sweeping statement regarding the history of mathematics on page 127: "if we assume Descartes's theorem [on exterior solid angles of polyhedra], we can prove that for any convex polyhedron V-E+F=2. As Malkevich points out in his article [in Shaping Space: A Polyhedral Approach, Senechal & Fleck (eds.)], this has led to the erroneous impression that Descartes could easily have discovered Euler's formula. But that would have required Descartes to think of a polyhedron as a combinatorial object, rather than a geometric object, a major intellectual leap at the time." This is complete nonsense. In fact, Descartes did think of polyhedra as combinatorial objects but choose not to publish since he did not get very far. A surviving manuscript has now been published: Descartes on Polyhedra: A Study of the "De solidorum elementis", Federico, Springer, 1982. Here Descartes gives several Euler-style identities, but none involving edges. Clearly, then, there was no "major intellectual leap" required to discover Euler's formula, just luck and persistence. The reason why Descartes and his contemporaries did not develop the combinatorial approach further was not some mysterious conceptual wall but simply the fact that this approach did not seem very fruitful.
Beware!.......2004-10-06
While some of these complaints may be due to the course that used this book, I do believe that this is one of the worst math books I've ever read.
The book has several problems. The most glaring problem is its vagueness. None of the (117) figures are labeled. None of the questions are numbered, or given any other identifying mark. Some questions refer to figures on different pages, but simply say "look at [the figure]," only to leave the reader with the thought "what figure." Or to suggest one figure, though to use a different figure all together. Coupled with the fact that many theorems are not stated, or are not identified and are rarely proven. Stylistically, this book is just a mess.
If that weren't bad enough, many of the figures look like clipart images from 1991. The book is copyright 1998, suggesting to me that if he spent 7 (or more) years writing this book, maybe he should have redone some of the figures so they're not such an eyesore. Maybe this is a minor point, but if you're going to advertise the fact that you have 117 images, maybe you should make those images look nice.
As for the books good points, the information presented is in a logical fashion, and is correct. The text is easy to read (in that the font is not too small, or strange), and the pages are sturdy enough to write on them if you need to play with the figures.
For any teachers/professors reading this, I would not recommend using this book as a primary source for your course. Maybe it would be ok as a supplementary source.
Finally, if you were considering using this book for the topic on graph theory, then I would suggest instead using "Introduction to Graph Theory" by Robin J. Wilson (ISBN: 0-582-24993-7)
Book Description
At the present time, the average undergraduate mathematics major finds mathematics heavily compartmentalized. After Calculus, students take courses in analysis and algebra, and depending on their interest, they take courses in special topics. If the student is exposed to topology, it is usually straightforward point set topology; if the student is exposed to geometry, it is usually classical differential geometry.
These notes are an attempt to break up this compartmentalization, at least in topology-geometry. What the student has learned in algebra and advanced calculus are used to prove some fairly deep results relating geometry, topology and group theory. The material studied includes De Rhams's theorem, the Gauss-Bonnet theorem for surfaces, the functional relation of fundamental group to covering space, and surfaces of constant curvature as homogeneous spaces.
Customer Reviews:
Concise and modern.......2004-06-07
First, a small carp at Amazon: The book has two authors and since John Thorpe is the junior and by far the less famous, I suspect that he actually did most of the writing. Please give him his due!
This is a very dense book. While this makes for rough sledding for the first timer, it's also an exciting introduction to modern topology and geometry and a good first step for those interested in such things in physics as gauge theories and superstrings. It's worth the effort.
Starting with the basics of set theory, the first couple chapters take the reader through point set topology. The next couple chapters introduce algebraic topology. The rest of the book is about the algebraic topology of differentiable manifolds and a very clean, modern introduction to the classical differential geometry of surfaces. The only caveat is, as Spivak says, "a weird proof of the de Rham theorem" in Chapter 6. I'm torn about this. The proof in Warner's "Foundations of Differentiable Manifold and Lie Groups" is much cleaner and better lends itself to other applications, but involves lots of machinery. The proof in Singer and Thorpe is a lot less elegant, using the lowest level tools possible. This makes the learning curve shorter and may make the theorem more clear, but may also obscure the big picture. Much of the important work in algebraic topology over the next 20 years and theoretical physics up to now is related to this result. Though much of this work was developed by Singer with his collaborater Michael Atiyah, their approach is closer to Warner's than to that in Singer and Thorpe.
For any particular topic in this book, you can find sources that you'll undoubtably find more digestible. This is the only book that brings them all together. It's an audacious effort.
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The Arithmetic of Elliptic Curves (Graduate Texts in Mathematics)
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