Reliability and Risk Analysis

Book Description

A prior knowledge of probability theory would be helpful for the material in Part I; likewise, a previous introduction to the engineered safety features of a nuclear reactor makes portions of Part II easier to understand. For those without this background, introductory material is provided in Chapter 2 and the appendixes.

Average customer rating:

excelent deal
Why Is This Textbook So Widely Used?
Consider it for what it is
Not if you want to learn math, use only as reference
Basic and Essential

Mathematical Methods For Physicists
George B. Arfken , and Hans J. Weber
Manufacturer: Academic Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Classical Mechanics (3rd Edition)
Classical Electrodynamics Third Edition
Modern Quantum Mechanics (2nd Edition)
Quantum Mechanics (2 vol. set)
Classical Dynamics of Particles and Systems

ASIN: 0120598760
Release Date: 2005-06-21

Book Description

This best-selling title provides in one handy volume the essential mathematical tools and techniques used to solve problems in physics. It is a vital addition to the bookshelf of any serious student of physics or research professional in the field. The authors have put considerable effort into revamping this new edition.

* Updates the leading graduate-level text in mathematical physics
* Provides comprehensive coverage of the mathematics necessary for advanced study in physics and engineering
* Focuses on problem-solving skills and offers a vast array of exercises
* Clearly illustrates and proves mathematical relations

New in the Sixth Edition:
* Updated content throughout, based on users' feedback
* More advanced sections, including differential forms and the elegant forms of Maxwell's equations
* A new chapter on probability and statistics
* More elementary sections have been deleted

Customer Reviews:

excelent deal.......2007-09-30

I appreciate the quick delivery of the book! I received it on the first day of the estimated time interval. I enjoy shopping at amazon.com!

Why Is This Textbook So Widely Used?.......2006-11-14

I am a graduate physics student with a strong mathematical background. This is the textbook used for our 2 semester course in mathematical methods for physics. The book is massive, both in content and physical weight. The cover is attractive and the printing seems to be fairly high quality. Now comes the difficult part of the review: finding other positive comments. First of all, I have only used a few chapters of the book thus far, so my comments pertain only to those. Some difficulties I have found... There are no answers to any exercises making the book fairly useless for self-study. The material is very uneven, as if each section was written by a different author (graduate student?). The explanations and examples are mediocre at best (contrast with the Mary Boas book). There are MANY typos - what ever happened to proof reading? The class INSTRUCTOR doesn't like the book, but is forced to use it by the department, and has regularly emailed the authors with corrections and recommendations. None of the students in the class like the book. You may be forced to use this book, but I would recommend other books as supplements (e.g., the book by Mary Boas and several in the Schaum Outline Series).

Consider it for what it is.......2006-10-11

This is a 1000 page supplement to other textbooks or courses, and works best when combined with an instructor that knows the material in depth. Personally, this book was a required text for an intro to theoretical physics class that I took a few years ago, and combined with the instructor's lectures that were partially supplemented by other authors (Boas), I learned quite a bit.

Now I am in graduate school and I am still coming back to this book as a solid reference for bessel (and other special) functions, complex variables, etc. This book has many problems, a lot of them have solutions, and most of the time you can determine for yourself if you have the correct answer. I would say a great strength of this book is the difficulty of the problems. Sure, it will take some time to work through them to a solid solution, but in doing the problems in Arfken and Weber I've found I had more depth in understanding after finding solutions. Other textbooks will have loads of problems all with very little differences. You have to actually think to solve the problems contained within this book, which will sharpen your mind for quickly solving problems that you otherwise might not attempt. At least that has been my experience.

Not if you want to learn math, use only as reference.......2006-09-27

I used this book as a textbook for a Math class. Okay, I'm not a mathematician so it was suppoused to be a side course. Since I'm not precisely fluent in most of these topics I expected to learn at least the basic stuff. But, as I tried to use the book as a basis for my studies, I found only concepts and demostrations, and no clear examples about anything! I think the authors must think that putting examples in a book like this may be considered offensive by some of their most lectured readers!

I recommend this book only if you are fluent in mathematics, if you already know about the topics and just want a reference book, or if you want to put your "genious" to the test trying to find out what's going on without any kind of aid.

Basic and Essential.......2006-08-05

This book is not so difficult and easy to understand, but it contains basic and essential mathematical knowledge and technique. If one learns eagerly this book, one can get important and useful knowledge to learn science or engineering. Let's become specialist of science or engineering.

Uncertainty, Calibration and Probability: The Statistics of Scientific and Industrial Measurement (The Adam Hilger Series on Measurement Science and)

Average customer rating:

Uncertainty, Calibration and Probability: The Statistics of Scientific and Industrial Measurement (The Adam Hilger Series on Measurement Science and)
C.F Dietrich
Manufacturer: Taylor & Francis
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0750300604

Book Description

All measurements are subject to error because no quantity can be known exactly; hence, any measurement has a probability of lying within a certain range. The more precise the measurement, the smaller the range of uncertainty. Uncertainty, Calibration and Probability is a comprehensive treatment of the statistics and methods of estimating these calibration uncertainties. The book features the general theory of uncertainty involving the combination (convolution) of non-Gaussian, student t, and Gaussian distributions; the use of rectangular distributions to represent systematic uncertainties; and measurable and nonmeasurable uncertainties that require estimation. The author also discusses sources of measurement errors and curve fitting with numerous examples of uncertainty case studies. Many useful tables and computational formulae are included as well. All formulations are discussed and demonstrated with the minimum of mathematical knowledge assumed. This second edition offers additional examples in each chapter, and detailed additions and alterations made to the text. New chapters consist of the general theory of uncertainty and applications to industry and a new section discusses the use of orthogonal polynomials in curve fitting. Focusing on practical problems of measurement, Uncertainty, Calibration and Probability is an invaluable reference tool for R&D laboratories in the engineering/manufacturing industries and for undergraduate and graduate students in physics, engineering, and metrology.

The Fokker-Planck Equation: Methods of Solutions and Applications (Springer Series in Synergetics)

Average customer rating:

Rigorous book
A good book on a difficult subject.

The Fokker-Planck Equation: Methods of Solutions and Applications (Springer Series in Synergetics)
Hannes Risken , and Till Frank
Manufacturer: Springer
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Similar Items:

Handbook of Stochastic Methods: for Physics, Chemistry and the Natural Sciences (Springer Series in Synergetics)
An Introduction to Stochastic Processes in Physics (Johns Hopkins Paperback)
Nonequilibrium Statistical Mechanics
Numerical Solution of Stochastic Differential Equations (Stochastic Modelling and Applied Probability)
Stochastic Processes in Physics and Chemistry, Third Edition (North-Holland Personal Library) (North-Holland Personal Library)

Accessories:

Critical Phenomena in Natural Sciences: Chaos, Fractals, Selforganization and Disorder: Concepts and Tools (Springer Series in Synergetics)
Cybernetical Physics: From Control of Chaos to Quantum Control (Understanding Complex Systems)
Nonlinear Dynamics of Chaotic and Stochastic Systems: Tutorial and Modern Developments (Springer Series in Synergetics)

ASIN: 354061530X

Book Description

This book deals with the derivation of the Fokker-Planck equation, methods of solving it and some of its applications. Various methods such as the simulation method, the eigenfunction expansion, numerical integration, the variational method, and the matrix continued-fraction method are discussed. This is the first time that this last method, which is very effective in dealing with simple Fokker-Planck equations having two variables, appears in a textbook. The methods of solution are applied to the statistics of a simple laser model and to Brownian motion in potentials. It is shown that the solution of the equation for Brownian motion in a variety of potentials can be expressed in terms suitable for evaluation on a computer. A supplement is included, containing a short review of new material together with some recent references. The book should be very useful to graduate students in physics, chemical physics, and electrical engineering, and also to research workers in these fields.

Customer Reviews:

Rigorous book .......2006-12-28

This book is a classical reference in the subject of stochastic dynamics. It is a graduate level book written in clear and concise language. It covers all the basics about Langevin and Fokker-Planck equations (Chapters 3 and 4). In these chapters, Moyal expansion, Ito and Stratonovich interpretation of stochastic processes is presented carefully. Then they move on to study various methods of solving FP equation in the next 7 chapters. In the final chapter, FP equation and its application to Laser is discussed.

I recommend reading this book along with Gardiner's book (Handbook of Stochastic Methods) to anyone who wants to learn about stochastic dynamics seriously.

A good book on a difficult subject........2004-03-15

I got the impression that there are very few good textbooks on the subject of random processes in continuous time and the Fokker-Planck equation, which are accessible for physicists. In this book the subject presented in a manner that I thought to be a good compromise between mathematical rigor and physical intuition. For example to the spirit of the book, white noise is introduced both from the point of view of a physicist (it has a very short correlation time etc) and from the point of view of a mathematician (as the "derivative" of a Wiener process). While I found the book not very friendly or easy to read, it was one of my main sources for self-learning this subject during my Ph. D. work. I found the book three years ago, own it for two years and keep learning from it until today. I recommend the book very much.

Monte Carlo Methods in Bayesian Computation (Springer Series in Statistics)

Average customer rating:

not a good starting point
Same writer reviewed book 4 times!
extensive book on MCMC
two great books
two great books

Monte Carlo Methods in Bayesian Computation (Springer Series in Statistics)
Ming-Hui Chen , Qi-Man Shao , and Joseph G. Ibrahim
Manufacturer: Springer
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Similar Items:

Monte Carlo Statistical Methods (Springer Texts in Statistics)
Bayesian Data Analysis, Second Edition (Texts in Statistical Science)
Monte Carlo Strategies in Scientific Computing
Markov Chain Monte Carlo in Practice (Interdisciplinary Statistics)
Bayesian Survival Analysis

Accessories:

Time Series Analysis and Its Applications: With R Examples (Springer Texts in Statistics)
Linear and Generalized Linear Mixed Models and Their Applications (Springer Series in Statistics)
Bayesian Core: A Practical Approach to Computational Bayesian Statistics (Springer Texts in Statistics)

ASIN: 0387989358

Book Description

This book examines advanced Bayesian computational methods. It presents methods for sampling from posterior distributions and discusses how to compute posterior quantities of interest using Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) samples. This book examines each of these issues in detail and heavily focuses on computing various posterior quantities of interest from a given MCMC sample. Several topics are addressed, including techniques for MCMC sampling, Monte Carlo methods for estimation of posterior quantities, improving simulation accuracy, marginal posterior density estimation, estimation of normalizing constants, constrained parameter problems, highest posterior density interval calculations, computation of posterior modes, and posterior computations for proportional hazards models and Dirichlet process models. The authors also discuss computions involving model comparisons, including both nested and non-nested models, marginal likelihood methods, ratios of normalizing constants, Bayes factors, the Savage-Dickey density ratio, Stochastic Search Variable Selection, Bayesian Model Averaging, the reverse jump algorithm, and model adequacy using predictive and latent residual approaches. The book presents an equal mixture of theory and applications involving real data. The book is intended as a graduate textbook or a reference book for a one semester course at the advanced masters or Ph.D. level. It would also serve as a useful reference book for applied or theoretical researchers as well as practitioners. Ming-Hui Chen is Associate Professor of Mathematical Sciences at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Qu-Man Shao is Assistant Professor of Mathematics at the University of Oregon. Joseph G. Ibrahim is Associate Professor of Biostatistics at the Harvard School of Public Health and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

Customer Reviews:

not a good starting point.......2004-12-19

You need to be clear what you are looking for. If you have vaguely heard that MCMC (Monte Carlo Markov Chain) methods are a neat way to apply Bayesian ideas to practical problems, and you want to use them, then this is *not* the book for you. Go to the splendid Gilks et al, Markov Chain Monte Carlo in Practice. Also check out BUGS, which is free software, originally written by Gilks and co and improved by many others.

If you want a more general introduction to Bayesian methods, then Gelman et al, Bayesian Data Analysis is excellent.

If you are unclear about the controversies and want to know why the Bayesian approach is correct, and the others are flat wrong, then read Ed Jaynes book.

So what is this book for. Well, I think you have to be a specialist, interested in further development of the techniques, and in the maths. As a previous reviewer has commented (correctly), in that case you probably have easy access to the journal literature and need to think carefully what extra benefits this book gives you.

Same writer reviewed book 4 times!.......2004-12-19

I depend upon the Amazon reviews to help determine whether to purchase a book as most others do. When a reviewer posts four 5 star reviews of the book (out of 7 total) it biases the rating and makes one wonder whether if the reviewer has an agenda or is related to the authors. This may be a great book, but I have no confidence from the rating given here.

extensive book on MCMC.......2002-10-18

This is truly an oustanding book on MCMC methods for Bayesian
computation. The authors present a nice balance between technical
developments and applications. It covers several topics not covered by other MCMC books, such as HPD regions, model selection, and density estimation. This book is world class.

two great books.......2002-10-17

This is an outstanding book on MCMC methods. The book presents
novel and sophisticated methods for carrying out posterior
computations and summarizing posterior quantities of interest using novel MCMC techniques. The authors present a lot of their
groundbreaking work as well as summarizing the work of many others. The book presents a number of complex models used in real and interesting applications in the biomedical sciences. Two of the authors also have wirtten another outstanding book titled Bayesian Survival Analysis (Ibrahim et al., 2001), which presents modern methods for Bayesian survival analysis and provides a comprehensive and thorough treatment of the subject. The authors are to be congratulated on writing two very fine books. Both books get 5 stars from me.

two great books.......2002-10-15

This is a great book by the authors, covering a wide range of
topics in MCMC. The coverage of the material is deep and novel.
Two of the authors also have published another outstanding book
titled Bayesian Survival Analyis, by Ibrahim et al., which presents
cutting edge and novel methods in the analysis of survival data.
Both books get 5 stars from me. A splendid job by the authors
in writing two very fine books.

Electrodynamics of Continuous Media, Second Edition: Volume 8 (Course of Theoretical Physics)

Average customer rating:

an invaluable reference!
Russian School of Physics
The BEST
A masterpiece.
ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS ON MACROSCOPIC ELECTRODYNAMICS!

Electrodynamics of Continuous Media, Second Edition: Volume 8 (Course of Theoretical Physics)
E M Lifshitz , L D Landau , and L P Pitaevskii
Manufacturer: Butterworth-Heinemann
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Similar Items:

The Classical Theory of Fields, Fourth Edition: Volume 2 (Course of Theoretical Physics Series)
Statistical Physics (Course of Theoretical Physics, Volume 5)
Fluid Mechanics, Second Edition: Volume 6 (Course of Theoretical Physics)
Physical Kinetics (Pergamon International Library of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Social Studies) (Course of Theoretical Physics)
Quantum Electrodynamics, Second Edition: Volume 4

ASIN: 0750626348

Book Description

Covers the theory of electromagnetic fields in matter, and the theory of macroscopic electric and magnetic properties of matter. There is a considerable amount of new material particularly on the theory of the magnetic properties of matter and the theory
of optical phenomena with new chapters on spatial dispersion and non-linear optics.

Customer Reviews:

an invaluable reference!.......2006-07-18

What can I say? There are 9 copies of this book in the library of my university and 8 of them have been checked out. The only one left is a reserved copy. And right now it's in the middle of a summer vacation! So many things that I want to know can be found in this book: the difference between Kerr effect and Faraday effect, the magneto-electric tensor, magnetic symmetries of crystals... etc. The explanations are usually very compact but extremely clear. Once many years ago I was frustrated at being unable to find a "physicist's description" of the galvanic cell. Finally, after searching many books and papers, I found a most satisfying explanation, exactly the way I needed it, in this book. It is an invaluable "reference" (but not textbook) for researchers working on material science, light-matter interactions, and related fields.

Russian School of Physics.......2006-03-27

This book has few uses. The book is so abbreviated that you need two other books to understand it. The one useful feature of this book is the problems with solutions, but even those take a lot of deciphering.

The BEST.......2000-05-16

It the best. I mean the whole course. If you can read Russian buy the original book - they are very very cheap (hardbound): a couple of dollars.

A masterpiece........1998-10-02

In the beginning there was ether. Then Maxwell discovered his wonderful equations and Einstein, drawing inspiration therefrom, discovered Relativity. There was no longer an ether. Thank God! For, before, every electric, magnetic and optical phenomenon was supposed to be explained by properties of this ubiquitous ether. For a brilliant account of the physics of the ether, read "Aether", by Maxwell himself, at the Encyclopaedia Britannica (not the present edition: go to* and look at the Classics). Since Lorentz it became fashionable, and sensible, to, first, derive all properties of the electromagnetic fiel in vacuum, and, then, to introduce matter and the complications which appear (and which give rise to most of the beauty of the world). This wonderful book deals with these complications, and shows the beauties that come out of them. This is a high class text, the reader being supposed to know all of basic physics, including, of course, quantum mechanics. Thermodynamics is used lavishly for static or quasi-static situations, providing depth and cohesion. Did you know that you cannot, in this age of new materials, concoct one with electric permittivity (the familiar epsilon) smaller than one lest you violate the second law of thermodynamics? The chapter on electromagnetic waves is superb, with the best treatment of light dispersion to be found anywhere. Did you know that you cannot produce a transparent material which would disperse light in a different sequence of colours than that of the usual glass prism lest you violate causality? You have to read this book. Grab your copy while you can find it. One never knows.

ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS ON MACROSCOPIC ELECTRODYNAMICS!.......1998-07-24

This is the Volume 8 of the famous Course of Theoretical Physics by L. D. Landau and E. M. Lifshitz. All serious students of theoretical physics must possess the ten volumes of this excellent Course, which cover in detail and rigour practically all the branches of theoretical physics. The Volume 8 treats the subject of the electromagnetic fields in matter, or the macroscopic electrodynamics. The book contains all the basic theory of macroscopic electrodynamics, discussing at the same time some more specialized and very interesting topics. The discussion is rigorous and very detailed, with clarity of exposition. There exists also in this book chapters not usually found in other similar books, such as the chapters on the dynamics of magnetic fluids, the theory of the interaction of fast particles with matter(for example, the Cerenkov radiation), the macroscopic theory of superconductivity and the theory of diffraction of X rays in crystals. There exists a little appendice! on curvilinear coordinates, which serves to auxiliate the reader in the mathematical calculations. Moreover, the authors discuss in a very elegant manner mathematical methods for solving problems in electrostatics, such as for example the method of conformal mapping. Certainly one of the best books on macroscopic electrodynamics!

Statistical Mechanics: A Set of Lectures (Advanced Book Classics)

Average customer rating:

A Solid Overview
a tremendous book
Style over substance.
extraordinary Masterpiece!
Statistics that "moos you along"

Statistical Mechanics: A Set of Lectures (Advanced Book Classics)
Richard Phillips Feynman
Manufacturer: Perseus Books Group
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Similar Items:

Quantum Electrodynamics (Advanced Book Classics)
Statistical Physics (Course of Theoretical Physics, Volume 5)
Statistical Mechanics, Second Edition
Quantum Theory of Many-Particle Systems
Quantum Mechanics: Non-Relativistic Theory, Volume 3, Third Edition (Quantum Mechanics)

ASIN: 0201360764

Customer Reviews:

A Solid Overview.......2005-07-05

The Feynman Lectures on Statistical Mechanics contain a great deal of very useful information, and each page is full of solid work without bothering too much with unnecessary details. The book also covers all the bases very well, hitting plenty of good examples, such as spin waves, and the obligatory superconductivity chapter is a solid introduction.

My only complaint is that the ordering of the book is a little haphazard. I understand that it is difficult to include quantum and classical statistical mechanics in one continuous run, but the book seems to jump around a bit.

All this considered, the book is probably a must-buy for people interested in statistical physics, as it is one of the better general overview books available (I despise the Reif; it needs to be updated and completely rearranged), and, as an added bonus, you get to see the Onsager solution to the 2-D Ising model. Cheers!

a tremendous book.......2005-02-02

when i was undergrad, i read Prof. Kerson Huang's stat mech. i think that book is good. everything is covered systematically, but everything is explained 'evenly'. if u r a careful reader, u still get the ideas of the essence, like partition function plays the central role of stat mech, etc.

now, i am reading feynman's book. it's totally diff from huang's. it's full of excitement. he put the principle of stat mech which is the relation b/w partition function and probability at the very beginning. all the other aspects in stat mech follow so straight forword and there are endless novel derivations in this book. i feel many of my previous understandings are interconnected by reading this book.

it's simply great, just like the other books written by feynman.

Style over substance........2003-12-30

Feynman was one of the most accomplished physicists in the 2nd half of the 20th century. His publications speak for themselves. However, as represented in this set of lecture notes, I do not find him as a pedagogue more enlightening than others. I bought and read this book in grad school, and found it to be a nice quick intro to several topics (spin waves and such). I did not, and still don't find the exposition physically exceptionally profound. One difference though, is the fact that Feynman, with his fame, could afford to be rather informal in his presentation. Any unsatisfactory aspects would be accepted as the mysterious ways of a 'genius'. If you are a student and would like to learn to solve problems on your own, forget this one. What this book gives you is a little 'attitude', aside from a quick intro, which most of us haven't earned the right to put on, of doing physics. Try it. Try to be as unorthodox and informal as he was, and you will mostly end up with nonsense.

extraordinary Masterpiece!.......2003-01-24

Richard Feynman said:"What I cannot create, I do not understand!". I am really amazed by his unique style of doing physics: he always create anything from scratch, always has his unique point of view, even on an old problem. All I can say about Feynman is Genius!!!
This book is about Feynman's extraordinary viewpoint on statistical mechanics. I can bet that this is an unique S.M book.
but i don't think it's for beginner, I suggest you should finish a standard statistical mechanics course before you read this one.
I can not find suitable words to admire this great book, so I quit here, but in the end, I strongly recommend this book to all physicists, physics-major students!

Statistics that "moos you along".......2002-01-14

A classic by one of the best. I wish I could say I understand
it all, but it rings true in many ways. His famous quote
"I can definitely say that Nobody understands Quantum Mechanics"
is perhaps this biggest "Moo Clue".

Dynamics of Markets: Econophysics and Finance

Average customer rating:

So what?
Good summary of the literature
McCauley complements Keynes and Mandelbrot
Some strengths, some weaknesses
Dynamics of Markets - Econophysics and Finance

Dynamics of Markets: Econophysics and Finance
Joseph L. McCauley
Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Similar Items:

Patterns of Speculation: A Study in Observational Econophysics
Introduction to Econophysics: Correlations and Complexity in Finance
The Statistical Mechanics of Financial Markets (Texts and Monographs in Physics)
Theory of Financial Risk and Derivative Pricing: From Statistical Physics to Risk Management
Why Stock Markets Crash: Critical Events in Complex Financial Systems

ASIN: 0521824478

Book Description

Standard texts and research in economics and finance ignore the absence of evidence from the analysis of real, unmassaged market data to support the notion of Adam Smith's stabilizing Invisible Hand. In stark contrast, this text introduces a new empirically-based model of financial market dynamics that explains the volatility of prices options correctly and clarifies the instability of financial markets. The emphasis is on understanding how real markets behave, not how they hypothetically 'should' behave.

Customer Reviews:

So what? .......2007-03-26

I am a 3rd year PhD student in Financial Economics, and although I should confess that I only browsed the book, not having fully read it (sorry about that...), I must say that this approach totally misses the target. I recommend anyone who is interested in knowing why to look up the following book review:

[...]

Have fun.

Good summary of the literature.......2007-01-10

I think this book is nicely written and covers a variety of subjects. What I missed while reading it was more applied examples.

McCauley complements Keynes and Mandelbrot.......2005-02-01

McCauley's(M) book definitely should be in the library of any technically trained (BA or BS degree in mathematics or statistics and a BA or BS in economics or finance) reader who is aware of the constant failure of neoclassical economics(and its modern variates such as rational expectations,real business cycle theory,monetarism,or supplyside economics), econometrics(Tinbergen,Frisch,Haavelmo and ,unfortunately,"Keynesian"econometricians like Modigliani,Tobin,Klein,and Solow) and financial analysts(Fama,Black,Merton,Scholes,Sharpe,Osborne,Markowitz and Cootner)to explain and forecast turning points in the business cycles of various countries and/or turning points in various financial markets(stock,commodity,real estate,currency,bond,money or derivatives)at any time in the last century,at least,using the assumption of normality(normal,lognormal,bivariate normal,multivariate normal,approximately normal,etc.).M presents a stochastic model based on the application of Green's Theorem to predict the future values of different options contracts(pp.180-192)that avoids the incorrect assumption of normality.M emphasizes changes in returns,as opposed to changes in prices a la Mandelbrot(pp.73-75).Again, the incorrect assumption of normality is avoided.This reviewer views these developments as occurring within the framework established by Mandelbrot no later than 1966.M is developing and improving aspects of Mandelbrot's general approach.However,there are three areas of M's book that need to be revised in a future edition.The first is his analysis of the classical-neoclassical concept of equilibrium and the process of adjustment involved over time.The argument made by neoclassical economists is that the economy( and all markets)is self equilibrating and always tending to or converging toward the optimal equilibrium point,although in point of fact,due to a constant set of external shocks,this equilibrium position is never reached.Thus, all short-run transactions may or may not be made at disequilibrium prices with no recontracting possible.The result,in the short run,is non optimal.However, in the long run,all of the losses and/or gains from such disequilibrium positions cancel or average out so that the resulting process can be analyzed "as if" the different markets were actually attaining equilibriums.Of course,all changes in market prices are assumed to be normally distributed around the equilibrium,market clearing price which is the average(arithmetic mean)of a normal probability distribution.This argument also is incorrect,but is much more difficult to refute since it is much more sophisticated ,using(misusing)the law of large numbers and the central limit theorem without ever actually examining the basic data.M needs to fine tune his basically sound critique to deal with the more sophisticated version of the neoclassical argument.If he does not,the neoclassical response will be that he does not understand microeconomic price theory.Second, Mandelbrot should not be bracketed with the likes of Markowitz Osborne,Sharpe,Black,Scholes,Merton,etc., on p.4 .Mandelbrot has, in fact,been clearly opposed,since the early 1960's, to the type of theoretical and statistical analysis and result that has been published by this group of economists and financial analysts.Third,M appears to have never read Keynes's A Treatise on Probability(1921;TP) or the 1939-40 exchange between Tinbergen and Keynes over the logical foundations of the basic econometric technique of multiple regression and correlation analysis ,as it regards forecasting of the business cycle.Keynes's complete argument can be found in chapter 17,pp.205-214,and chapters 29,30, 32,and 33 of the TP.Keynes always argued that,outside of the fields of life and physical science,the normal distribution was rather special and limited in application. The use of it required clearcut empirical testing of the data before normality could be assumed.Finally,Keynes's analytic tool in the General Theory(1936) is to show that the general case in macroeconomics is the existence of multiple stable equiibria.This describes the commodity or output market.The labor market is a function of changes in the commodity market.The labor market is in a state of constant disequilibrium,equilibrium only possibly occurring in the special case of a global optimum being obtained in the commodity market.M is correct that the analysis in most markets should be based on excess demand functions.Keynes arrived at this approach in 1936.A set of D=Z functions(functions clearly defined by Keynes in the GT and analyzed by Keynes in chapters 20 and 21 of the GT) define a locus of points that Keynes called the AGGREGATE SUPPLY CURVE.Only one of these points gives a global optimum.The economics profession has made a bloody mess of Keynes's mathematical analysis since the publication of the GT in 1936,constantly confusing the expected aggregate supply function,Z,with the aggregate supply curve,D=Z.M's treatment of Keynes is deficient and needs to be fixed in a later edition.A complete mathematical analysis of Keynes's theory of effective demand is contained in Brady(2004),"Essays on JM Keynes and..."

Some strengths, some weaknesses .......2004-12-28

The book serves up a very interesting and enlightening alternative to traditional economic thought in a variety of different contexts. I would certainly recommend it to any graduate student of physics or economics seeking to have a well rounded view the financial world.

The great weakness of this text is that the author seems to more than simply disagree with traditional economic theory, he despises it. That might not by itself be so great a weakness if the theory offered up in its stead were compelling, but, the author's passion notwithstanding, that is not the case here. The math aside, in tone and method this book reminds me very much of books authored by Intelligent Design advocates, seeking more to destroy the prominent competing theory than to present a coherent theory of its own.

Perhaps such passion is needed to get the neoclassical economists to pay attention. As in many things, I suspect the two schools of thought have much to teach one another.

On a more practical level, this is not a book for those who have not had a very solid grounding in mathematics, and likely unsuitable for all but the brightest, and most mathematically inclined, undergraduates.

Dynamics of Markets - Econophysics and Finance.......2004-12-10

Dynamics of Markets - Econophysics and Finance

by Joseph McCauley

reviewed by: Enrico Scalas

In 1720, Newton invested his money in the South Sea bubble and lost £20000, a lot of money in those days [1].
So, physicists do not always do it better in financial markets.

Having said that, let us now go on and consider the merits and limits of this book by Joseph McCauley.

The book is divided into nine chapters. Chapters 1, 3, 8 and 9 cover material from epistemology (ch. 1), probability theory (ch. 3), fluid dynamics (ch. 8), and the theory of computation (ch. 9). Chapters 2, 4, 5,6 and 7 are mainly devoted to economics and finance. Namely, chapter 2 critically reviews the general theory of equilibrium, chapter 4 is on the dynamics of markets, chapter 5 and 6 present portfolio selection theory and
option pricing, respectively, and, finally, chapter 7 is a criticism of thermodynamic analogies in finance.

The range of interests of the author is overwhelming and this book is the first attempt to put together many concepts taken from various disciplines in a coordinate view. I am a fan of this method and I much appreciate the effort of the author. However, this is also a limit, as the reader looking for recipes to price options or to select a suitable portfolio will be somehow disappointed. In the very same way, those looking for a
rational criticism of neo-classical assumptions in economics are likely to read the chapters on option pricing without great passion.

In a short review, it is impossible to take into account all the aspects of McCauley's book.
I will just discuss one: equilibrium in economics. But, before that, let me underline that this is the first book in Econophysics where everything in finance is done by explicitly formulating and calculating Green functions. Second, the author presents the European option price predictions in a closed algebraic form and, third, Gaussian returns play no role in the predictions fully based on the empirical distribution.

The author presents a nice criticism of the concept of equilibrium in economics which, in itself, is worth
buying and reading the book. The arguments are scattered throughout the book, as the author is interested
in discussing the behaviour of financial market. For economics and finance, the author provides convincing evidence that the only legitimate form of equilibrium is vanishing excess demand. But price fluctuations in actual financial markets cannot be effectively explained by a sequence of different economic equilibria determined by varying exogenous factors. Then, the only possibility is that excess demand is considered as a stochastic process leading to diffusive models for price (or return) dynamics. Thus, the use of the Green-function formalism in Finance is a natural and logical choice.

McCauley's discussion on equilibrium would have been helped by reference to Kaldor's 1972 paper on the irrelevance of equilibrium economics [2]. Kaldor's point of view coincides with the one of McCauley when he argues that ultimately theories must be confronted with the real world. In discussing the difference between an axiomatic theorem and a scientific theory, Kaldor quotes Einstein: << Physics constitute a logical system of thought which is in a state of evolution, whose basis cannot be distilled, as it were, from experience by an inductive
method, but can only be arrived at by free invention. The justification (truth content) of the system rests in the verification of the derived propositions by sense experiences. The skeptic will say: "it may well be true that this system of equations is reasonable from a logical standpoint. But it does not prove that it corresponds to nature". You are right, dear skeptic. Experience alone can decide on truth. >> [3]

Also in this book, as in many contemporary books, there are various misprints and the constant reference to wrong equation numbers is disturbing.

I think that this book can be read with profit both by physicists interested in complex systems and by economists interested in the principles of their discipline. Economists can always refer to Newton's example mentioned above, when they read in the book about the success of physicists in finance.

References

[1] C. Reed, "The Damn'd South Sea" Britain's greatest financial speculation and its unhappy ending, documented in a rich Harvard collection. Harvard Magazine, May-June 1999.

[2] N. Kaldor, "The Irrelevance of Equilibrium Economics", The Economic Journal, vol. 82, n. 328, 1237-1255, 1972.

[3] A. Einstein, "Ideas and Opinions", Gramercy; Reprint edition (December 12, 1988).

Statistical Physics for Cosmic Structures (Lecture Notes in Physics)

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Statistical Physics for Cosmic Structures (Lecture Notes in Physics)
A. Gabrielli , F. Sylos Labini , M. Joyce , and L. Pietronero
Manufacturer: Springer
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 3540407456

Book Description

The physics of scale-invariant and complex systems is a novel interdisciplinary field. Its ideas allow us to look at natural phenomena in a radically new and original way, eventually leading to unifying concepts independent of the detailed structure of the systems. The objective is the study of complex, scale-invariant, and more general stochastic structures that appear both in space and time in a vast variety of natural phenomena, which exhibit new types of collective behaviors, and the fostering of their understanding. This book has been conceived as a methodological monograph in which the main methods of modern statistical physics for cosmological structures and density fields (galaxies, Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation, etc.) are presented in detail. The main purpose is to present clearly, to a workable level, these methods, with a certain mathematical accuracy, providing also some paradigmatic examples of applications. This should result in a new and more general framework for the statistical analysis of the many new data concerning the different cosmic structures which characterize the large scale Universe and for their theoretical interpretation and modeling.

Statistical Physics (Course of Theoretical Physics, Volume 5)

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Green's functions, superfluids, superconductors, magnetism
Great Book, the best I've ever seen!
Unrivalled Masterpiece
A UNIQUE BOOK ON MODERN STATISTICAL PHYSICS
THE BEST BOOK ON STATISTICAL PHYSICS

Statistical Physics (Course of Theoretical Physics, Volume 5)
E M Lifshitz , and L D Landau
Manufacturer: Butterworth-Heinemann
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Binding: Paperback

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Quantum Mechanics: Non-Relativistic Theory, Volume 3, Third Edition (Quantum Mechanics)
Course of Theoretical Physics : Mechanics (Course of Theoretical Physics)
The Classical Theory of Fields, Fourth Edition: Volume 2 (Course of Theoretical Physics Series)
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ASIN: 0750633727

Book Description

A lucid presentation of statistical physics and thermodynamics which develops from the general principles to give a large number of applications of the theory.

Customer Reviews:

Green's functions, superfluids, superconductors, magnetism.......2004-12-12

This review is for Volume 9 of the Landau Course of Theoretical Physics.

The whole Course is clear and concise, so it makes sense for anyone who wants to do theoretical physics to go through all ten volumes.

We start off with normal Fermi liquids and gases, including a nice discussion of Zero Sound (which is distinguished from normal sound mostly by a slight increase in the sound velocity as one gets colder than a transition temperature, and by increased absorption of sound near the transition temperature). Then we learn about Green's functions in a Fermi system at T = 0 and Feynman diagram representations of them.

After that, we study Bose liquids and gases. That means the properties of superfluids, including quasi-particles (phonons and rotons) and quantized vortex filaments. And the book shows how to apply Green's functions to Bose liquids. There's an interesting section on the disintegration of quasi-particles. Next, we're introduced to Green's functions for T > 0, using the Matsubara operators to reduce the complexity of the diagrams.

And then we're ready to learn about superconductors. That means learning about Cooper pairing and superfluid Fermi gases, and learning how to apply Green's functions to them. And, not surprisingly, we learn the Ginzburg-Landau equations, so that we can determine the behavior of superconductors in magnetic fields in temperature ranges near the transition point.

There's also a chapter on electrons in the crystal lattice, including the de Hass-van Alphen effect (which refers to a metal's magnetic susceptibility oscillating as the strength of a strong magnetic field changes - due to the quantization of the energy levels of the electrons) and electron-phonon interactions. And there's a nice chapter on magnetism.

In the preface, the authors state "we must again stress that this book is part of a course of theoretical physics and in no way attempts to be a textbook of solid state theory." Are they kidding? This course is an excellent way to learn solid state physics.

Great Book, the best I've ever seen!.......2001-08-24

no words can describe the richness and clarity of this book.the description of Maxwell's distribution, Gibbs formalism,etc...all with marvelous clarity and rigour. Everyone who wants to learn statistical Mechanics (under and graduates) MUST read this book.

Unrivalled Masterpiece.......2001-05-06

This book is a classic, especially in the sense it is somewhat old fashioned in its basic approaches when compared with newer books. For example it examines statistics and entropy from the ergodic as opposed to the ensemble approach. Information Theory and role of symmetry and symmetry breaking is not treated in detail. However I can't hold these omissions against the book since these developments happend mostly in the late 70s.

What Landau does here, and which in explicably very few Statistical Mechanics books do nowadays, is the full Gibbs Formalism. Not only is the Gibbs Formalism more compatible with Quantum Mechanics, it can also fits in beautifully with Ensemble Statistics and Inofrmation Theory. More over, it is at once clear Maxwell and Boltzmann statistics are only special cases of the Gibbs formalism, and can be easily shown in a few lines.

What Landau does, is to gave an elegant and cohesive view the trully fundamental features of Statistical Mechanics. Chapters 1-6 of this book alone displays a deeper level of understanding than whole books that have been written. If you are interested in Statistical Mechanics at all, this must be a centerpiece of your library.

A UNIQUE BOOK ON MODERN STATISTICAL PHYSICS.......1998-07-24

This is the Volume 9 of the famous Course of Theoretical Physics by L. D. Landau and E. M. Lifshitz. All serious students of theoretical physics must possess the ten volumes of this excellente Course, which cover in detail and rigour practically all the branches of theoretical physics. The Volume 9 treats important specialized topics of modern statistical physics. These topics include the theory of quantum liquids(Fermi and Bose types), the theory of superfluidity, created by Landau to account for the phenomena ocurring in liquid helium at approximately 2 kelvin, the microscopic theory of superconductivity, the general method of Green's functions, so important to modern statistical physics, and some other topics, such as the quantum mechanics of a electron in a crystal lattice. The book still contains the general theory of electromagnetic and hydrodynamic fluctuations, treated in the spirit of the Green's functions. These topics are treated with rigour, efficiency and c! larity of language. For this reason, all readers with some aqquaintance with basic statistical physics can read and understand much of this book without major problems. Certainly there is not other book comparable with the Volume 9, a unique and valuable addition to the literature on modern statistical physics!

THE BEST BOOK ON STATISTICAL PHYSICS.......1998-07-23

This is the Volume 5 of the famous Course of Theoretical Physics by L. D. Landau and E. M. Lifshitz. All serious students of theoretical physics must possess the ten volumes of this excellent Course, which cover in detail and rigour practically all the branches of theoretical physics. The Volume 5 treats the subject of classical and quantum statistics. It contains an unusual approach of these subjects, based on the general Gibbs method, avoiding the introduction of ergodic hypotheses and, in the case of the ideal gas, of "a priori" probabilities, which are difficult to justify and serves only to obscure the exposition. The book is complete and contains chapters not usually found in other similar books, such as the chapter on second-order phase transitions. The clarity of exposition and rigour is notorious in this book. A magnific book!

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