Book Description

The new Seventh Edition of Burden and Faires' well-respected Numerical Analysis provides a foundation in modern numerical-approximation techniques.Explaining how, why, and when the techniques can be expected to work, the Seventh Edition places an even greater emphasis on building readers' intuition to help them understand why the techniques presented work in general, and why, in some situations, they fail.Applied problems from diverse areas, such as engineering and physical, computer, and biological sciences, are provided so readers can understand how numerical methods are used in real-life situations.The Seventh Edition has been updated and now addresses the evolving use of technology, incorporating it whenever appropriate. ... Read more

Reviews (20)

Very moderate calculus is all it takes
Anyone who thinks this book is too difficult and/or requires a Ph.D. in mathematics has simply never learned any math, such as calculus and linear algebra. In that case, it's indeed easier to simply buy software that implements all the necessary numerical algorithms. This book is not a set of instructions for using a calculator, it is a book for an intelligent reader who thinks creatively and wants to understand the logic behind classical numerical methods.

Very transparent, clear, and straight to the point this book is all I needed to quickly learn about the Gaussian quadrature and understanding both the algorithm itself as well as WHY IT WORKS AND DOES SO EFFICIENTLY. Please disregard the previous author's review, as its poisonous tone alone should suggest that he is trying to blame his own mathematical deficiencies upon the authors of this very worthwhile text.

Numerical Analysis for Dummies its not...
This book covers all the topics a reader would expect of numerical analysis and comes with a CD of pre-built code for many of the analysis techniques. From my perspective, the authors' present theorem and proof with relatively few examples. I found myself referring to Gerald and Wheatley's Applied Numerical Analysis (among others) for the duration of my college course to attain the level of understanding expected by the university. Gotta love libraries! At $.., this is the most expensive math book I've purchased, and I can say that I wouldn't value it at this price if it had not been selected by the university. Best of luck to those who read it...

full of errors
I normally don't write reviews for books, but I felt compelled to say that this book has quite a few errors that I've personally found quite annoying. The errors aren't mentioned in the authors' online errata either, which covers only the 1st printing. I'd think you could iron out most bugs after 7 editions, but apparently not. The coverage of material itself, while not great, is acceptable, but there are random errors scattered throughout that threw me off. At least a few of the algorithms, when implemented, don't work properly. Some of the solutions in the back aren't accurate or are just wrong (e.g., some ask for what h you need to be below a certain error bound, then proceed to give a larger h than is really necessary). Just my two cents.

Review of Numerical Analysis, 7th edition
This is a numerical analysis book written from a mathematician's point of view, and requires from the reader a good background in calculus and linear algebra.

Even though the book has an initial chapter ("mathematical preliminaries"), reading this chapter is not enough if the student has not a good previous mathematical knowledge.

The book introduces modern approximation techniques and explains how, why and when these techniques are expected to work, and allows the reader to understand why one algorithm works better than other for a given problem.

The text contains many examples as well as application problems in various areas of science and engineering.

The book uses Maple as the standard software for symbolic and approximate calculus, even though Mathematica and Derive are mentioned too and could be used instead with small modifications.

The original English edition (7th edition) includes a CD-ROM with all the algorithms, expressed in different formats (C, Fortran, Pascal, Maple, Mathematica and MATLAB), although the Spanish translation (edited by Thomson Learning) does not include the CD-ROM. However, there is an Internet address in which the CD-ROM contents can be accessed.

To conclude, the book is a good text that requires a mathematical background from the reader and covers a broad range of modern approximation techniques. It is not a mere numerical methods cookbook, but a text that analyzes and applies the numerical methods instead.

Wordy, poor algorithms, worse code
Like other reviewers, I'm still struggling to find a decent advanced mathematics textbook. Some of the problems with Burden's book includes insufficient examples and explanations. He introduces strange and unnecessary notation in his algorithms; for example in chapter 7 (Iterative techniques for solving linear systems) many of his index loops run from 1 to n. If he set them from 0 to n-1, it would clean up much of his logic. He also apparently loves the variable XO to represent the initial approximation x naught.

Maybe due to my physics background, but his notation of representing indexes of variables as a _power_ is confusing:
Burden represents the i-th index of x as x^(i), not to be confused the i-th power of x: x^i. Modern typesetting includes subscripts, why not use them instead? Heck, use LaTeX and do the same thing (x_i)!

Finally, several of the codes on the included CD refused to run, and some of them didn't give correct answers. You will need some programming experience to edit, as none of the codes (at least all of the Matlab and possibly all of the C) adhere to any programming standards or formatting. Mr. Burden (or his programmer) is invited to purchase and use Steve McConnell's "Code Complete"--or hire someone who knows how to write maintainable code well. What is the purpose of supplying code if it cannot be used in other projects? "Gee Wiz, the book includes Code!" one might exclaim. "But what good is it?" is the inevitable response. ... Read more

Book Description

This book eases students into the rigors of university mathematics. The emphasis is on understanding and constructing proofs and writing clear mathematics. The author achieves this by exploring set theory, combinatorics, and number theory, topics that include many fundamental ideas and may not be a part of a young mathematician's toolkit. This material illustrates how familiar ideas can be formulated rigorously, provides examples demonstrating a wide range of basic methods of proof, and includes some of the all-time-great classic proofs. The book presents mathematics as a continually developing subject. Material meeting the needs of readers from a wide range of backgrounds is included. The over 250 problems include questions to interest and challenge the most able student but also plenty of routine exercises to help familiarize the reader with the basic ideas. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Now I know how beautiful proofs can be
This book provides a nice introduction to mathematical reasoning and proofs. My intention on purchasing this book was to learn how to perform mathematical proofs. I believe it has achieved that purpose. The text is easy to follow and the author presents the work clearly.

Just buy this
I needed a book that covered fundamental background information behind mathematical proof techniques for an undergraduate univeristy level linear algebra class.

With this book, I was able to truly learn and understand the major concepts behind mathematical logic and proof. This text brings a whole new meaning to teaching the reader about being precise; and I mean the author does an extremely terrific job of doing just that. Wow!

Seriously, the focus here is on content so you won't find any sexy graphs or anything. The content is so good that I often felt that just by reading it I was propelled into a quasi- pseudo-lecture meeting.

After following this text, I can say that I now appreciate the act of being precise to the point that is required for mathematical proof. If you want to extend the knowledge of your 'white board' then just buy this thing. I am so glad I did.

BTW, I only needed the content from the first five chapters, I can't say much about the rest of the text. However, taking an inductive approach, I must assume that the other chapters are also very excellent. Yess, see it worked!

Fabulous So Far.
I'm at the end of my first discrete mathematics course and have struggled to find clear explainations of how to write a proof, meaning how to choose what method and how to choose what the next statement should be to lead to the desired conclusion. I'm only on chapter five and it is a breath of fresh air to read this. Rather than just showing the completed proof Eccles shows the "scratch" work that goes into making the proof, discusses the reasoning and alternative paths, and then has the final proof that is easily understood.

An excellent supplement for a typical college text.

It's a Jewel
This book is a jewel for every Mathematics student! It has clear and understandable notation. It also help us understand some methonds for demonstration and how to write clear mathematics. It's a must-buy!

User-Friendly! Almost makes learning analysis fun!
If you are struggling with a first analysis course or any course that uses proofs, this is the book for you! It introduces basic analysis topics like logic, sets, and the real numbers. And it is written in almost plain english! Moreover, the author focuses on teaching proof writing. ... Read more

Book Description

The book provides an easily accessible computationally oriented introduction into the numerical solution of stochastic differential equations using computer experiments. It develops in the reader an ability to apply numerical methods solving stochastic differential equations in their own fields. Furthermore, it creates an intuitive understanding of the necessary theoretical background from stochastic and numeric analysis. The book is related to the more theoretical monograph P.E. Kloeden and E. Platen, Numerical Solution of Stochastic Differential Equations, 1992, but can be independently used. It provides solutions to over 100 exercises used in this monograph to illustrate the theory. Corresponding Turbo Pascal programs are given on a floppy disk; furthermore commentaries on the programs and their use are carefully worked out in the book. ... Read more

Book Description

"Georges Ifrah is the man. This book, quite simply, rules. . . . It is outstanding . . . a mind-boggling and enriching experience." –The Guardian (London) "Monumental. . . . a fascinating journey taking us through many different cultures."–The Times (London)"Ifrah’s book amazes and fascinates by the scope of its scholarship. It is nothing less than the history of the human race told through figures." –International Herald Tribune Now in paperback, here is Georges Ifrah’s landmark international bestseller–the first complete, universal study of the invention and evolution of numbers the world over. A riveting history of counting and calculating, from the time of the cave dwellers to the twentieth century, this fascinating volume brings numbers to thrilling life, explaining their development in human terms, the intriguing situations that made them necessary, and the brilliant achievements in human thought that they made possible. It takes us through the numbers story from Europe to China, via ancient Greece and Rome, Mesopotamia, Latin America, India, and the Arabiccountries. Exploring the many ways civilizations developed and changed their mathematical systems, Ifrah imparts a unique insight into the nature of human thought–and into how our understanding of numbers and the ways they shape our lives have changed and grown over thousands of years. "Dazzling."–Kirkus Reviews "Sure to transfix readers."–PublishersWeekly ... Read more

Reviews (7)

A great book to browse through
I was intrigued enough by Mr. Peterson's review here to look at the review by Dauben that he mentions. My conclusion is that the Dauben review should be treated with a grain of salt. It's not particularly balanced. In some of the criticism of Ifrah from people with more degrees than he has, one gets just a whiff of jealousy that the reviewers didn't have the endurance to write the book themselves.

If they had, I doubt they would have done any better of a job. Ifrah's book isn't perfect, but one can't expect such a book to be. This book is huge, folks. Ifrah is only one human being who tried to synthesize dozens of fields in none of which he could expect to become an expert. I think he did his best and I find his writing style companionable. Of course he makes errors, but he says a lot more things very well. We should be mindful of the book's limitations. But we also have to be grateful for what Ifrah managed to do.

A deception?
This book is getting raves from intelligent readers who are not
experts in the history of numbers. But it sure isn't getting good reviews from experts. A group of scholars in France was disturbed by the uncritical popularity of the French edition,
and released a report calling the French edition "historically
unacceptable, a deception." [Bulletin de l'Association des
Professeurs de Mathematiques de l'Enseignement Publique 399 June 1995)] (I got this quote from Joseph Dauben's book review.)
More recently, in the January 2002 and February 2002 issues of
the Notices of the American Mathematical Society, Joseph Dauben
of Lehman College at CUNY critiqued the English tranlations of this book and its companion, "The Universal History of Computing." Professor Dauben consulted a number of experts in specialties such as the history of Arabic mathematics, Hindu mathematics, Mesopotamian mathematics, Chinese mathematics, and Mayan mathematics. His review is skeptical.

I'll quote various lines from Dauben's January review:

"...he[Ifrah]either wrote to the wrong experts, was indifferent to their responses, or was not prepared to settle for their inconclusive results and the tentative nature of their research."

"...Ifrah offers nothing but certainties." (when writing about
the Hindu-Arabic number system)

"[James]Ritter simply declares all of this to be false, due to an erroneous conflation of sources. First of all, he takes Ifrah's list to be a contrived amalgamation of names coming from
all epochs." (James Ritter is an Assyriologist at Universite de Paris VIII, the quote is about Ifrah's conclusions about Sumerian numbers.)

Read Professor Dauben's review. Afterwards, George Ifrah's fun-to-read, plausible book won't count for as much.

5000 years in the fascinating story of numbers
One day, the young "devils" in a high school's mathematics class in France, asked some "plain" questions to their teacher: "When the numbers were invented?", "What is the history of the number Zero?", "How the ancients began writing down symbols for the numbers?" and so on... And these questions, changed the life of Georges Ifrah, the mathematics teacher in our story. He began his long voyage in the history of numbers and mathematics, through all mysterious ancient civilizations.

"Universal History of Numbers" is a huge, marvellous, fascinating story which deals with the birth of essential concepts in numbering systems in our distant past. Ifrah chases the clues in ancient sumerians hexagesymal system; the magical hieroglyphes of ancient Egyptians; the mysterious Maya and their counting system; Hebrew, Greek and Roman numbers with the mystics of "gematria"; sacred numerical signs of ancient Indus civilization and China, and much much more.

This is not just a "history of numbers"; Ifrah's work is a brilliant study on the roots of our civilization. While dealing with the numbers, he also presents us a perfect panorama of ancient cultures, such as the Maya calendar, the Vedic philosophy, Ancient Sumerian myths or the stories of Egyptian gods, in a very entertaining style. If you are interested with the roots of civilization and "ancient wisdom", you must read this excellent book - you'll never regret.

Absolutely Astounding
This book is a treasure beyond measure. Truly a history of mankind traced through numbers, starting with the dispersion of mankind at Babel. The dedication of this author is astounding, and his ability to assemble the tremendous amount of research into this work is worthy of some medal or prize of some sort. Surly God gave this man an unusual mind to present to the world such a work. I can't find the words to adequately describe this awesome and monumental work. Well done is not enough. Thank you Georges Ifrah.

Excellent work numbers
Simply the best book on numbers I've read. Many other books on numbers are replete with inaccuracies and exaggerations based on cultural and educational biases. Not here. Ifrah's chapter on the India's contribution to numbers and how the Sanskrit language was used to communicate numbers is simply spectacular. A must read for anyone interested in mathematics. ... Read more

Amazon.com

The Book of Numbers lets readers of all levels of mathematical sophistication (or lack thereof) understand the origins, patterns, and interrelationships of different numbers. Whether it is a visualization of the Catalan numbers or an explanation of how the Fibonacci numbers occur in nature, there is something in here to delight everyone. The diagrams and pictures, many of which are in color, make this book particularly appealing and fun. A few of the discussions may be confusing to those who are not adept mathematicians; those who are may be irked that certain facts are mentioned without an accompanying proof. Nonetheless, The Book of Numbers will succeed in infecting any reader with an enthusiasm for numbers. ... Read more

Reviews (9)

Artful Numbers
This book is excellent. I am not a mathematician; my Ph.D. is in a social science, but my interest in intellectual history made this book worth it for me. The reason that it seems a bit expensive is because the authors use color illustrations. These are really helpful and make the book more exciting. The book is essentially number theory for a lay person. All you need to have is high school level math in order to start enjoying this book, so don't be afraid. Conway and Guy present a fascinating look at what the human intellect can achieve in the realm of abstract thought. Number theory, and mathematics in general, can be mysterioius, artful, and exciting. Highly recommended.

nice but not for the timid
This is a really excellent work on all aspects of numbers, but only if you already have a pretty fair familiarity with them, i.e., several college mathematics courses or a significant amount of self-education. I particularly enjoyed the chapter "Doing Arithmetic and Algebra by Geometry" because it provided an interesting perspective on what number is. There are also chapters on the primes, imaginary numbers, infinite numbers etc. etc.

Numbers used as toys
To these "guys", numbers are toys, where the price of possession is nothing but a little knowledge. It is truly astounding, even for veteran mathematicians such as myself, to see how many different sets of numbers there are. They all have a story behind them, and given the multiple uses for so most of them, there are many more yet to be written.
Presented in a unique and engaging style that one associates with the authors, the numbers come to life with descriptions that hold your interest and leave you wanting more. The level of demonstration is not extremely technical, being well within the range of anyone who has been exposed to the topics of precalculus. Figures are used extensively, giving a visual interpretation of several ways in which the numbers can be used. Many of the numbers covered in the book are named after the person most responsible for making it famous, an aspiration that most mathematicians would no doubt confess to. In some cases, I was previously unaware of the name assigned to the numbers.
When I am in the mood for some light reading in mathematics, my preferred form is some type of listing of the properties of numbers. In this case, I found several hours of enjoyment and recommend it to anyone with similar tastes.

Published in Journal of Recreational Mathematics, reprinted with permission.

Delightful!!!
This is a delightful survey of numbers clearly aimed at as wide an audience as possible. However, as is always the case in such books the book is more formidable than it intends or than it looks. Still it is very friendly especially compared with, say, "Numbers" by Ebbinghays et al. The coverage is wide: primes, reals, Cayley numbers, Eisenstein numbers, polygonal numbers, catalan numbers, Stirling numbers of both types and of course Bell numbers. There are the cardinals and ordinals of Cantor as well as Conway's own surreal numbers. (And an earlier reviewer was correct about misprints and color problems.) I recommend this to anyone whose mathematical maturity is at least as great as basic calculus (and who is interested).

Excellent, but not as good as ONAG or Winning Ways
Conway wrote On Numbers and Games. Conway, Guy, and Berlekamp wrote Winning Ways. These groundbreaking books are now hard to find. I hope both will be reprinted soon. The Book of Numbers has a short section on Combinatorial Game Theory -- just a taste. I expected much more about CGT. Still, TBON is an excellent book about numbers. Many diagrams, a lot of top-notch mathematics, and excellent writing fills each chapter. I would recommend this book for any high school student, but it would be quite enjoyable for fans of math at any level. ... Read more

Book Description

Of the many different approaches to solving partial differential equations numerically, this book studies difference methods. Written for the beginning graduate student in applied mathematics and engineering, this text offers a means of coming out of a course with a large number of methods that provide both theoretical knowledge and numerical experience. The reader will learn that numerical experimentation is a part of the subject of numerical solution of partial differential equations, and will be shown some uses and taught some techniques of numerical experimentation.

Prerequisites suggested for using this book in a course might include at least one semester of partial differential equations and some programming capability. The author stresses the use of technology throughout the text allowing the student to utilize it as much as possible. The use of graphics for both illustration and analysis is emphasized, and algebraic manipulators are used when convenient.

This is the first volume of a two-part book. The second part is entitled Numerical Partial Differential Equations: Conservation Laws and Elliptic Equations. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Good, practical book for FDM applied to PDE
This is a book that approximates the solution of parabolic, first order hyperbolic and systems of partial differential equations using standard finite difference schemes (FDM). The theory and practice of FDM is discussed in detail and numerous practical examples (heat equation, convection-diffusion) in one and two space variables are given. In particular, Alternating Direction Implicit (ADI) methods are the standard means of solving PDE in 2 and 3 dimensions.
In almost all cases model problems are taken in order to show how the schemes work for initial value problems, initial boundary value problem with Dirichlet and Neumann boundary conditions.
This book is a *must* for those in science, engineering and quantitative financial analysis. It digs into the nitty-gritty of mapping a PDE to a FDM scheme while taking nasty boundary conditions into consideration. The resulting algorithms are documented are are easily programmed in C++ or other language.
The book does not cover topics that are also important: operator splitting (Marchuk/Janenko), non-constant coefficient PDEs, nonlinearities. Finally, the book uses von Neumann analysis as a means of proving stability (getting a bit long in the tooth). There are more robust methods that use monotone schemes, M-matrices and the maximum principle. You should consult other specialised references.
This is Volume I of a two-volume set (Volume II deals with Conversation Laws and first-order hyperbolic as well as Elliptic problems.

(...)

Numerical Partial Differential Equations
Thomas wrote a good book on a quite specialized subject. Although finite difference schemes have been traditionally viewed as a game field for physicists, they are given today much more commercial attention as financial option market evolves. Those who seek standard numerical recipes are advised to read this book. You will enjoy it (easy reading) and learn. But the book may not satisfy quests of a more rigorous readership. It abuses the Fourier method in stability analysis while considering only PDEs with constant coefficients. The bibliographical work has not been done at all. In addition, the cover does not state that this is the first book of two. I'd also advise to read G.Marchuk "Methods of Numerical Mathematics" (Springer, 1982) where a more general approach for stability of numerical schemes is developed. ... Read more

Book Description

This book develops the basic mathematical theory of the finite element method, the most widely used technique for engineering design and analysis. This expanded second edition contains new chapters on additive Schwarz preconditioners and adaptive meshes. New exercises have also been added throughout. The book will be useful to mathematicians as well as engineers and physical scientists. It can be used for a course that provides an introduction to basic functional analysis, approximation theory, and numerical analysis, while building upon and applying basic techniques of real variable theory. Different course paths can be chosen, allowing the book to be used for courses designed for students with different interests. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

a nice introductory book
This book is a very nice introductory book on the subject. It has a very nice presentation of the fundamental issues on finite element theory, such as interpolation theory on Sobolev spaces and variational formulations of elliptic problems. Also, it covers some advanced and more specific subjets such as multigrid methods and mixed methods for fluid mechanics, where it reviews some of the most used techniques to solve the saddle-point problems such as Augmented Lagrangian techniques and penalty methods.

Also, at the end of the book there is a very well written chapter focused on Interpolation operators, where there is a very nice (and very easy to read) presentation of the Sccot-Zhang interpolation operator, and some of the principal results on approximation.

Resuming, it is a very recomendable book in the subjet, specially recomendable for mathematics students interested on finite elements, and researchers in the field. ... Read more

Book Description

Besides giving readers the techniques for solving polynomial equations and congruences, An Introduction to Mathematical Thinking provides preparation for understanding more advanced topics in Linear and Modern Algebra, as well as Calculus. This book introduces proofs and mathematical thinking while teaching basic algebraic skills involving number systems, including the integers and complex numbers. Ample questions at the end of each chapter provide opportunities for learning and practice; the Exercises are routine applications of the material in the chapter, while the Problems require more ingenuity, ranging from easy to nearly impossible.Topics covered in this comprehensive introduction range from logic and proofs, integers and diophantine equations, congruences, induction and binomial theorem, rational and real numbers, and functions and bijections to cryptography, complex numbers, and polynomial equations.With its comprehensive appendices, this book is an excellent desk reference for mathematicians and those involved in computer science. ... Read more

Book Description

We have been curious about numbers--and prime numbers--since antiquity. One notable new direction this century in the study of primes has been the influx of ideas from probability. The goal of this book is to provide insights into the prime numbers and to describe how a sequence so tautly determined can incorporate such a striking amount of randomness.

There are two ways in which the book is exceptional. First, some familiar topics are covered with refreshing insight and/or from new points of view. Second, interesting recent developments and ideas are presented that shed new light on the prime numbers and their distribution among the rest of the integers.

The book begins with a chapter covering some classic topics, such as quadratic residues and the Sieve of Eratosthenes. Also discussed are other sieves, primes in cryptography, twin primes, and more.

Two separate chapters address the asymptotic distribution of prime numbers. In the first of these, the familiar link between $\zeta(s)$ and the distribution of primes is covered with remarkable efficiency and intuition. The later chapter presents a walk through an elementary proof of the Prime Number Theorem. To help the novice understand the "why" of the proof, connections are made along the way with more familiar results such as Stirling's formula.

A most distinctive chapter covers the stochastic properties of prime numbers. The authors present a wonderfully clever interpretation of primes in arithmetic progressions as a phenomenon in probability. They also describe Cramér's model, which provides a probabilistic intuition for formulating conjectures that have a habit of being true. In this context, they address interesting questions about equipartition modulo $1$ for sequences involving prime numbers. The final section of the chapter compares geometric visualizations of random sequences with the visualizations for similar sequences derived from the primes. The resulting pictures are striking and illuminating. The book concludes with a chapter on the outstanding big conjectures about prime numbers.

This book is suitable for anyone who has had a little number theory and some advanced calculus involving estimates. Its engaging style and invigorating point of view will make refreshing reading for advanced undergraduates through research mathematicians. This book is the English translation of the French edition. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

discursive look at modern prime number theory
This book gives a survey of some of the top results, methods, and conjectures about the distribution of prime numbers. For many results it gives complete (but very concise) proofs.

Highlights are: a sketch of Dirichlet's original proof of his theorem on the infinitude of primes in arithmetic progressions; a new (1984) elementary proof of the Prime Number Theorem due to Henri Daboussi; a brief introduction to Cramer's ideas about using probability theory to conjecture results about the distribution of primes; and a survey of current unsolved problems. Daboussi's proof is especially interesting because it introduces a number of ideas that are used over and over again in more advanced work, in particular the study of numbers free of large, or small, prime factors.

The book can be read either as a survey of what is currently known, or in more detail for a good understanding of modern methods. ... Read more

Book Description

This book presents the description of the state of modern iterative techniques together with systematic analysis. The first chapters discuss the classical methods. Comprehensive chapters are devoted to semi-iterative techniques (Chebyshev methods), transformations, incomplete decompositions, gradient and conjugate gradient methods, multi-grid methods and domain decomposition techniques (including e.g. the additive and multiplicative Schwartz method). In contrast to other books all techniques are described algebraically. For instance, for the domain decomposition method this is a new but helpful approach. Every technique described is illustrated by a Pascal program applicable to a class of model problem. ... Read more

Book Description

This book describes the theoretical foundations of inelasticity, its numerical formulation and implementation. The subject matter described herein constitutes a representative sample of state-of-the- art methodology currently used in inelastic calculations. Among the numerous topics covered are small deformation plasticity and viscoplasticity, convex optimization theory, integration algorithms for the constitutive equation of plasticity and viscoplasticity, the variational setting of boundary value problems and discretization by finite element methods. Also addressed are the generalization of the theory to non-smooth yield surface, mathematical numerical analysis issues of general return mapping algorithms, the generalization to finite-strain inelasticity theory, objective integration algorithms for rate constitutive equations, the theory of hyperelastic-based plasticity models and small and large deformation viscoelasticity. Computational Inelasticity will be of great interest to researchers and graduate students in various branches of engineering, especially civil, aeronautical and mechanical, and applied mathematics. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Absolutely Accept No Substitute
This book is really well organised, and the theory is well presented, particularly Chapter 1. It is among the few which I highly recommend, and it is value for money.

Right on target yet someting missing
The book had been in the making at Stanford for some time. I happened to use a manuscript of it in 1991 at Virginia Tech. I was pleasantly surprised how quickly a student could pick up relevant aspects of compuatational plasticity from this book; the book has a style of its own. We have successfully used the book in programming the integral (or endochronic) hardening rule with the incremental theory of plasticity. The book surely makes a useful companion to a plasticity textbook.

It is disheartening to see that the numerical schemes for the integration of the constitutive equations of the endochronic theory are missing from the book.

A good book in computational mechanics
The authors have missed the opportunity of producing a comprehensive text on inelasticity. They have done such a good job in covering the computational mechanics aspect of inelasticity. For a proper understanding of underlying constitutive equations of inelasticity one has to rely on a more definitive book such as Plasticity Theory by Jacob Lubliner, or, Introduction to Theories of Plasticity by S. K. Jain, or, Continuum Theory of Plasticity by Khan and Huang. Hope the authors will consider expanding their book a bit.

Comprehensive text for numerics of constitutive modelling.
This textbook covers very classical areas of solid mechanics. But it differs from the previous texts in providing the right numerical framework for the implementation of these classical ideas. It also contains some very recent results in constitutive modelling developed by the authors (eminent Stanford University academicians).

For all those in the Finite Element industry, doing numerical modelling work, this will be an excellent text/reference. ... Read more

Book Description

This text emphasizes the intelligent application of approximation techniques to the type of problems that commonly occur in engineering and the physical sciences. Students learn why the numerical methods work, what type of errors to expect, and when an application might lead to difficulties. The authors also provide information about the availability of high-quality software for numerical approximation routines. The techniques are essentially the same as those covered in the authors' top-selling Numerical Analysis text, but in this text, full mathematical justifications are provided only if they are concise and add to the understanding of the methods. The emphasis is placed on describing each technique from an implementation standpoint, and on convincing the student that the method is reasonable both mathematically and computationally. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Good book for Numerical Methods Class
I had previously sat in on a Numerical Analysis class, and I have to say that this book was much better than the one that we were forced to use. The examples were clear, and the text focused much less on proofs and more on how to do problems and calculate their error. The sample programs on disk were also thorough, and included in several different languages (c, fortran, pascal, maple, mathematica, & matlab). ... Read more

Book Description

This text provides a first course in numerical methods and programming taught through the medium of MATLAB. It is designed to give readers their first exposure to any kind of programming. The first three chapters introduce readers to the power of MATLAB without overwhelming them with its advanced features; the text then covers all the elementary material associated with numerical methods, and helps students develop skills in algorithm design. Examples of code are provided to debug, hence accentuating the need for precision, and developing readers’ skills in finding errors in their own work. At the end of each chapter, tasks are provided to reinforce the ideas introduced, with full solutions at the back of the book. A glossary of terms is provided, with each term supported by an example of the syntaxes commonly encountered.

Aimed at first and second year undergraduates in mathematics and engineering, this book will also be invaluable for engineers who need to use MATLAB in their work environment.

Reviews (1)

Good compilation
This book, a compilation of 33 articles covering many different aspects and applications of Clifford algebras, can be read profitably by anyone desiring an overview of their history, theory, and applications. I did not read every article, and space also prohibits such a comprehensive review, so I will comment only on the ones that I actually studied.

Chapter introduces Clifford algebras as an extension of the real numbers to include vectors and vector products. The familiar representation in Euclidean space is outlined, with emphasis on the exterior product of two vectors, which, the author points out, is associative (unlike the ordinary cross product). The connection with rotations, reflections, and volume elements is pointed out, and the complex numbers and the Pauli algebra are shown to be Clifford algebras.

A short history of Clifford algebras is given in chapter 2. The reader not familiar with Clifford algebras should have no trouble following the ensuing discussion where some elementary geometric constructions are given of the Clifford algebra on the Euclidean plane. In addition, the operator approach to Weyl, Majorana, and Dirac operators is given, illustrating in detail their connection to physics. Recognizing that the Fierz identities do not by themselves give the Weyl and Majorana spinors, the author introduces what he calls the boomerang method for their construction. The boomerang is essentially a linear combination of bilinear covariants for a spinor, and the author details the conditions under which the spinor can be reconstructed. Interestingly, and unknown to me at the time of reading this chapter, the author constructs a new class of spinors, the "flag-dipole" spinors, that are different from the Weyl, Majorana, and Dirac spinors.

The author of chapter 3 considers the construction of Clifford algebras from a more geometric viewpoint, calling them geometric algebras, which he motivates by the consideration of extending the reals by a unipotent ( a number not equal to +1 or -1 but whose square is 1). The resulting unipodal numbers are isomorphic to the diagonal 2 x 2 matrices. The extension of the unipodal numbers so as to make this isomorphism to the full 2 x 2 matrix algebra leads to Clifford algebras.

In Chapter 9, the spacetime algebra is brought in to study electron physics. The "space-time algebra" or STA is used to characterize the observables associated with Pauli and Dirac spinors. The material presented is standard in physics, wherein the Green's function (propagator) for the Dirac equation is given, along with scattering theory. The typical problem of scattering off a potential barrier of finite width is discussed, along with the Klein paradox.

The space-time algebra is also discussed in the context of the interpretation of quantum mechanics in Chapter 11. The authors really do not add anything new here (in terms of what one might consider "strange" behavior in quantum physics). They interpret Dirac currents as measurable quantities, avoiding seemingly any notion of wave packet collapse and difficulties with defining tunneling time(s), but not answering at all how to measure these currents. In addition, the Pauli principle is interepreted in the context of space-time algebra, without any quantum field theory. Howerver, it is not shown that such an approach satisfies cluster decomposition, casting suspicion on its utility.

In Chapters 21, 22, and 23 the author shows how spinors fit into the framework of the Lorentz group, their relationship to the Clifford algebra, and in general relativity. It is shown how the Dirac spinor can be defined in three different ways, namely as an element of the representation space of the Clifford algebra of spacetime, an element of the representation space of the fundamental representation of the Dirac spinor metric-preserving automorphism group of the Clifford algebra, and as an element of the representation space of the fundamental representation of the covering group of the conformal group.

The most interesting discussion in the book is chapter 28 on extending the Grassmann algebra. Dispensing with any scalar product on a vector space, the author shows how to obtain the relative magnitude between two vectors and this leads to the notion of a multivector. The duals to these are called outer forms, and are the familiar differential forms when depending on spatial position. Many helpful diagrams are used to illustrate the properties of multivectors and pseudomultivectors, the linear span of which is called the extended Grassmann algebra of multivectors. Adding a scalar product reduces the number of directed quantities to four, and electrodynamics can be formulated in a way that is independent of the scalar product. ... Read more

Book Description

This book develops the statistical approach to inverse problems with an emphasis on modeling and computations.  The framework is the Bayesian paradigm, where all variables are modeled as random variables, the randomness reflecting the degree of belief of their values, and the solution of the inverse problem is expressed in terms of probability densities.  The book discusses in detail the construction of prior models, the measurement noise modeling and Bayesian estimation.  Markov Chain Monte Carlo-methods as well as optimization methods are examples that are often non-trivial but easy to follow.  Besides the simple examples, the book contains problems as discretization errors, and statistical model reduction.  Furthermore, the techniques are then applied to a number of real world applications such as limited angle tomography, image deblurring, electical impedance tomography, and biomagnetic inverse problems.  The book is intended for researchers and advanced students in applied mathematics, computational physics, and engineering.  The first part of the book can be used as a text book on advanced inverse problems courses. ... Read more

Book Description

This book surveys techniques of random number generation and the use of random numbers in Monte Carlo simulation. The book covers basic principles, as well as newer methods such as parallel random number generation, nonlinear congruential generators, quasi Monte Carlo methods, and Markov chain Monte Carlo. The best methods for generating random variates from the standard distributions are presented, but also general techniques useful in more complicated models and in novel settings are described. The emphasis throughout the book is on practical methods that work well in current computing environments. The book includes exercises and can be used as a test or supplementary text for various courses in modern statistics. It could serve as the primary test for a specialized course in statistical computing, or as a supplementary text for a course in computational statistics and other areas of modern statistics that rely on simulation. The book, which covers recent developments in the field, could also serve as a useful reference for practitioners. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Great Reference Book !
Very useful book if you plan to use Monte Carlo methods in your work. A timely topic + a highly respected authority in the field + good writing style = a great reference book !

Not good for the beginner
Even though this book contains a lot of things,but you can not konw exactly how to do them from the book.The whole book is something like introduction and result.If you are interested at random number algorithm, this book is OK.The best book of Monte Carlo Methods for the beginner is Basics, Volume 1, Monte Carlo Methods,though this book is quite expensive.

Random number algorithms
Software developers will find this book very useful. It gives a thorough introduction to the types of RNGs available (linear congruential, lagged Fibonacci, etc.), as well as a thorough analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of each. The math is complete, but not intimidating. Algorithms are included for sampling from many different types of distributions (Beta, Weibull, etc.). A helpful discussion of generating independent streams of random numbers (i.e., on parallel processors or machines) is included.

Also useful: a chapter on assessing the quality of RNGs, discussions of Gibbs and Latin Hypercube sampling, and bootstrapping.

This book is "non-denominational". Many MC books focus on simulation in particular fields (such as physics). The focus here is on the science of random numbers itself.

This short book has been extremely helpful in my implementation of Monte Carlo methods. The first 40 pages are virtually a daily reference for me. Any developer needing assistance and understanding of the types of random number generators available will find this small book extremely helpful. ... Read more

Book Description

The purpose of this text is to offer a comprehensive and self-contained presentation of some of the most successful and popular domain decomposition preconditioners for finite and spectral element approximations of partial differential equations. Strong emphasis is placed on both algorithmic and mathematical aspects. Some important methods such FETI and balancing Neumann-Neumann methods and algorithms for spectral element methods, not treated previously in any monograph, are covered in detail.

Book Description

This second edition of G. Winkler's successful book on random field approaches to image analysis, related Markov Chain Monte Carlo methods, and statistical inference with emphasis on Bayesian image analysis concentrates more on general principles and models and less on details of concrete applications. Addressed to students and scientists from mathematics, statistics, physics, engineering, and computer science, it will serve as an introduction to the mathematical aspects rather than a survey. Basically no prior knowledge of mathematics or statistics is required. The second edition is in many parts completely rewritten and improved, and most figures are new. The topics of exact sampling and global optimization of likelihood functions have been added. This second edition comes with a CD-ROM by F. Friedrich,containing a host of (live) illustrations for each chapter. In an interactive environment, readers can perform their own experiments to consolidate the subject. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

a bible book to learn Gibbs sampler and simulated annealing
This is absolute a bible book for any person who want to learn Gibbs sampler and simulated annealing seriously. The format of this book, though full of mathematical equations, is very self-evident and concise. Nothing is missing and nothing is redundent. It is an enjoyable journey to follow the logic and principle in this book, with all your attention in. There are full of in-depth discussion in all aspect of the Gibbs sampler, simulated annealing, from the visiting scheme to cooling schedule, and parallel algorithms. The references are excellent too. The author seems to have read all publications till 1995 about this topic and give an excellent detailed and in-depth survey in his book. At the end of your reading, you would have love the mathematical form the author used. Without these tools, many discussions in this book will be just impossible and groundless. I personally have read this book for several times. ... Read more

Book Description

This book introduces the concepts and methodologies related to the modelling of the complex phenomena occurring in materials processing. After a short reminder of conservation laws and constitutive relationships, the authors introduce the main numerical methods: finite differences, finite volumes and finite elements. These techniques are developed in three main chapters of the book that tackle more specific problems: phase transformation, solid mechanics and fluid flow. The two last chapters treat inverse methods to obtain the boundary conditions or the material properties and stochastic methods for microstructural simulation. This book is intended for undergraduate and graduate students in materials science and engineering, mechanical engineering and physics and for engineering professionals or researchers who want to get acquainted with numerical simulation to model and compute materials processing. ... Read more