Book Description

Throughout history, thinkers from mathematicians to theologians have pondered the mysterious relationship between numbers and the nature of reality. In this fascinating book, Mario Livio tells the tale of a number at the heart of that mystery: phi, or 1.6180339887...This curious mathematical relationship, widely known as "The Golden Ratio," was discovered by Euclid more than two thousand years ago because of its crucial role in the construction of the pentagram, to which magical properties had been attributed. Since then it has shown a propensity to appear in the most astonishing variety of places, from mollusk shells, sunflower florets, and rose petals to the shape of the galaxy. Psychological studies have investigated whether the Golden Ratio is the most aesthetically pleasing proportion extant, and it has been asserted that the creators of the Pyramids and the Parthenon employed it. It is believed to feature in works of art from Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa to Salvador Dali's The Sacrament of the Last Supper, and poets and composers have used it in their works. It has even been found to be connected to the behavior of the stock market!

The Golden Ratio is a captivating journey through art and architecture, botany and biology, physics and mathematics. It tells the human story of numerous phi-fixated individuals, including the followers of Pythagoras who believed that this proportion revealed the hand of God; astronomer Johannes Kepler, who saw phi as the greatest treasure of geometry; such Renaissance thinkers as mathematician Leonardo Fibonacci of Pisa; and such masters of the modern world as Goethe, Cezanne, Bartok, and physicist Roger Penrose.Wherever his quest for the meaning of phi takes him, Mario Livio reveals the world as a place where order, beauty, and eternal mystery will always coexist. ... Read more

Reviews (40)

Pursuing the Mysteries of the Ubiquitous Number Phi
Mario Livio, a cosmologist and art aficionado at the Hubble Space Telescope Center and the author of the previous book "The Accelerating Universe," wrote a lot about the irrational (never-ending, never-repeating) number phi, or the Golden Ratio, whose value is 1.6180339877... The story starts from these questions: Who discovered the Golden Ratio? Was phi used in the design of a Babylonian stela and Egyptian pyramids? The author pursues the answers to these questions, writing a series of his thoughts like a detective story.

Then he describes the role of the Greek mathematicians Plato and Euclid, and the Italian mathematician Leonardo Fibonacci in the history of phi, together with the geometrical and arithmetical wonders connected to this number. One example of the wonders is the relation between the Fibonacci sequence and phi. The Fibonacci sequence 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, ... is defined as a series of numbers in which each term is the sum of the two preceding terms. The ratio of successive numbers of this sequence approaches phi as we go farther and farther down the sequence.

Next come the topics of phi found in nature and used in arts. The logarithmic spiral, which goes hand in hand with the Golden Radio, appears in the sunflower, the flight of a falcon, galaxies, etc. The author's study of many historical attempts to disclose the Golden Ratio in various works of art, pieces of music and poetry comes to the conclusion that ... (I have to refrain from writing the ending of the "detective story").

In the final chapter Livio considers the question: What is the reason that mathematics and numerical constants like phi play such a central role in topics ranging from fundamental theories of the universe to the stock market? Noting that the discussion about this question can fill the entire volume, the author gives a brief (but very understandable) description of the modified Platonic view and the natural selection interpretation. He also presents his personal opinion, which adopts complementarity of the above two views. This chapter whets readers' appetite for a possible next book on this topic to be written by Livio.

I strongly recommend "The Golden Ratio" to scientists, artists and laypersons that are interested in the wonders of numbers and mathematics and in their relations to arts and nature.

Golden Indeed!
Following in the steps of his earlier, just as fascinating account linking cosmology and the arts ("The Accelerating Universe"), Mario Livio continues to prove he is one of the most original, exciting and literate writers of popular science today. "The Golden Ratio" is a witty and learned journey generally following the trail of the number Phi, but stopping along the way to take in subjects as diverse as philosophy, history, art, religion, the sciences, architecture, etc.

Writing about science in a way that is both knowledgeable and understandable for the common reader is an infamous hurdle, but Livio leaps over it with the greatest of ease, giving clear explanations of every potentially difficult matter and providing the scientific proofs in the appendices, for those more mathematically inclined. Overall, though, it is the great humanity of Livio's worldview that shines through the book and makes it, at least for me, one of the most memorable reads of the year.

A Difficult Mathematical Concept Revealed
As a non-mathematician I appreciate any help I can get in understanding the more esoteric parts of math. The Golden Ratio is just such a concept. Fortunately, Mario Livio has shown much light on this remarkable corner of geometry in his book "The Golden Ratio."

It is little wonder that such numbers as the Golden Ratio were considered magical. The never ending, never repeating number that cannot ever be expressed as a fraction has an uncanny tendency to show up in the oddest places, not only galactic structure and nautilus shells, but in plant parts and composition of paintings and music. Unfortunately magical numerology can lead to far-fetched relationships, as to the so-called number of the beast (666), and to academicism in art. Just because the Golden Ratio results in a pleasing relationship in a composition we are not tied to always measure art on how well it fits that ratio!

Livio has illuminated the history of the Golden Ratio in such a way that much of the associated themes can be understood by the reasonably educated laymen. While some of the book can be tough sledding for most of us non-mathematicians, the gist is available to all with some effort.

Read this book to learn about the history of interpretation and misinterpretation of mathematical concepts.

A great guide to an amazing number
Livio's book is really an interesting look at a number similar to pi in that's an irrational number which displays itself in various places in nature, from the arrangement of petals on a flower to the logarithmic spirals of galaxies.

Livio explains the original formulation of this number by Euclid and proceeds to address the various times in history in which it may have been employed by architects, artists and musicians.

I think this is a really good book if you're interested in reading about the most "irrational of all irrational numbers".

Mathematically Profound
Broad streams of literary, historical, aethsetic and religious thought are pooled together in a concise and well-illustrated review of this powerful proportion, which recurs in the natural world in surprising places both large and small. Clearly presented mathematical proofs give the book a solid backbone. Mathematical ideas are expressed in the book through a combination of prose, appendix proofs, and plentiful illustrations & diagrams. This allows readers of varying mathematical ability and learning styles to appreciate the beautiful ideas that Livio gracefully presents. A must for serious lovers of proportion & geometry, architects, mystics, painters, graphic designers and mathematicians. ... Read more

Book Description

The market-leading textbook for the course, Winston's OPERATIONS RESEARCH owes much of its success to its practical orientation and consistent emphasis on model formulation and model building. It moves beyond a mere study of algorithms without sacrificing the rigor that faculty desire. As in every edition, Winston reinforces the book's successful features and coverage with the most recent developments in the field. The Student Suite CD-ROM, which now accompanies every new copy of the text, contains the latest versions of commercial software for optimization, simulation, and decision analysis. ... Read more

Book Description

Calculations in Molecular Biology and Biotechnology: A Guide to Mathematics in the Laboratory is the first comprehensive guide devoted exclusively to calculations encountered in the genetic engineering laboratory. Mathematics, as a vital component of the successful design and interpretation of basic research, is used daily in laboratory work. This guide, written for students, technicians, and scientists, provides example calculations for the most frequently confronted problems encountered in gene discovery and analysis.The text and sample calculations are written in an easy-to-follow format. It is the perfect laboratory companion for anyone working in DNA manipulation and analysis.

*A comprehensive guide to calculations for a wide variety of problems encountered in the basic research laboratory.
* Example calculations are worked through from start to finish in easy-to-follow steps
* Key chapters devoted to calculations encountered when working with bacteria, phage, PCR, radioisotopes, recombinant DNA, centrifugation, oligonucleotides, protein, and forensic science.
*Written for students and laboratory technicians but a useful reference for the more experienced researcher.
*A valuable teaching resource. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A Calculator and This Book on Every Lab Bench
.
For most of my entry-level biotechnology students, it's not the science, it's the math.

Adults and students in my three-year biotechnology pathway (San Mateo Biotechnology Career Pathway) have weak, incomplete or dated math backgrounds. Dr. Stephenson's "Calculations for Molecular Biology anf Biotechnology" quickly and clearly explains and demonstrates how to make the most common calculations done in biotechnology research and manufacturing.

In a conversational way, that puts users of all levels at ease, the book does a particularly good job of presenting text in small, digestible amounts with practice problems and answers directly following.

For my program, Chapter 1 (Scientific Notation and Metric Prefixes) and Chapter 2 (Solutions, Mixtures, and Media) are excellent reviews and remediation of calculations taught in the first semester's standard lab training.

Other chapters include several sections that are used or could be used as reference for my second and third year students. Some of these include bacterial growth curves and cell culture concentrations (Chapter 3), DNA Quantitation using spectrophotometers and gels (Chapter 5), PCR reactants concentration and preparation (Chapter 8), Protein Quantitation using spectrophotometry (Chapter 10), and Data Analysis (Chapter 12).

One of the things I like best about the book is that there are so many topics presented that my students have proposed several new research ideas utilizing the techniques and calculations presented.

I recommend this book as a reference for technicians, researchers, students, and teachers who work or are training to work in biotechnology labs or manufacturing facilities. ... Read more

Book Description

This new approach to mathematics --- the utilization of advanced computing technology in mathematical research --- is often called experimental mathematics. The computer provides the mathematician with a "laboratory" in which she can perform experiments --- analyzing examples, testing out new ideas, or searching for patterns.

This book presents the rationale and historical context of experimental mathematics, and includes a series of examples that best portray the experimental methodology. For more examples and insights, the book, "Experimentation in Mathematics: Computational Paths to Discovery" is a highly recommended companion. . ... Read more

Reviews (2)

A thoroughly detailed work
The collaborative work of Jonathan Borwein and David Bailey, Mathematics By Experiment: Plausible Reasoning In The 21st Century provides a complex and informative text for advanced mathematics students which offs an historical context and rationale behind experimental mathematics, as well as how modern technology enables the analysis of new examples and the discovery of patterns in a previously unimaginable "laboratory" of raw processing power. A thoroughly detailed work, Mathematics By Experiment offers a veritable wealth of meticulously presented examples which are most especially recommended for graduate-level mathematics studies.

A Mathematical Paradigm Shift
"Mathematics by Experiment" is a ground-breaking book about a new way of doing math that generated so much excitement it was reviewed in "Scientific American" six months before it got into print. The authors are long-time collaborators David Bailey, chief technologist in the Computational Research Department of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, and Jonathan Borwein, professor of science at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, B.C.

They write that applied mathematicians and many scientists and engineers were quick to embrace computer technology, while pure mathematicians -- whose field gave rise to computers in the first place, through the work of beautiful minds like Alan Turing's -- were slower to see the possibilities. Two decades ago, when Bailey and Borwein started collaborating, "there appeared to be a widespread view in the field that 'real mathematicians don't compute.'"

Their book is testament to a paradigm shift in the making. Hardware has "skyrocketed in power and plummeted in cost," and powerful mathematical software has come on the market. Just as important, "a new generation of mathematicians is eagerly becoming skilled at using these tools" -- people comfortable with the notion that "the computer provides the mathematician with a 'laboratory' in which he or she can perform experiments: analyzing examples, testing out new ideas, or searching for patterns."

In this virtual laboratory Bailey and Borwein, with other colleagues, were among the first to discover a number of remarkable new algorithms, among them an extraordinary, simple formula for finding any hexadecimal or binary digit of pi without knowing any of the preceding digits. Further research led to proof that a wide class of fundamental constants are mathematically "normal" -- probably including pi, alhough that remains to be proved.

Their section on "proof versus truth" is an example of the gems even a mathematical tyro can find among these equations. Bailey and Borwein don't claim computers can supply rigorous proofs. Rather, the computer is a way to discover truths -- and avenues for approaching formal proofs. But often, the authors add, "computations constitute very strong evidence..., at least as compelling as some of the more complex formal proofs in the literature."

Drawing on their own work and that of others, Bailey and Borwein not only explain experimental mathematics in a lively, surprisingly accessible fashion but give many engaging examples of the "new paradigm" in action. ... Read more

Book Description

This book offers a step-by-step guide to the experimental planning process and the ensuing analysis of normally distributed data."Design and Analysis of Experiements" emphasizes the practical considerations governing the design of an experiment based on the objectives of the study and a solid statistical foundation for the analysis.Almost all data sets in the book have been obtained from real experiments.The book is accessible to all readers who have a good basic knowledge of expected values, confidence intervals, and hypothesis tests.It is ideal for use in the classroom at both the senior undergraduate and graduate level. ... Read more

Book Description

The twentieth century has witnessed an unprecedented 'crisis in the foundations of mathematics', featuring a world-famous paradox (Russell's Paradox), a challenge to 'classical' mathematics from a world-famous mathematician (the 'mathematical intuitionism' of Brouwer), a new foundational school (Hilbert's Formalism), and the profound incompleteness results of Kurt Gödel. In the same period, the cross-fertilization of mathematics and philosophy resulted in a new sort of 'mathematical philosophy', associated most notably (but in different ways) with Bertrand Russell, W. V. Quine, and Gödel himself, and which remains at the focus of Anglo-Saxon philosophical discussion. The present collection brings together in a convenient form the seminal articles in the philosophy of mathematics by these and other major thinkers. It is a substantially revised version of the edition first published in 1964 and includes a revised bibliography. The volume will be welcomed as a major work of reference at this level in the field. ... Read more

Book Description

"This book fills a large gap in the applied statistics literature and, at the same time, provides empirical researchers with the means to quickly determine a valuable piece of information, namely: what sample size is needed for a particular study. "If this book only presented the reader with a straightforward set of procedures for determining N for any particular research design, it would have fulfilled its mission successfully. But the book does more. . . . How Many Subjects? has much to offer the careful and interested reader." --from the Foreword by Victor H. Denenberg "How Many Subjects? provides a 'cookbook' enabling researchers to plan an analysis that gives their alternative or research hypotheses a reasonable chance of being supported . . . useful to those with limited statistical background who simply need a guide to evaluating the power of a test contained in others' research, or to selecting the proper sample size to achieve a given level of power in their own research." --Contemporary Sociology "Until now no broad framework has existed to treat power in a unified fashion across hypothesis testing techniques. . . . An excellent contribution to the literature. . . . A valuable reference book. . . . A nice addition to the statistical literature. How Many Subjects? should be at the disposal of teachers and students of statistics." --Applied Psychological Measurement "This is a simple introduction for non-statisticians to power analysis and sample size determination. Helena Chmura Kraemer and Sue Thiemann have produced an easily readable book that clearly illustrates why sample sizes need to be sufficiently large, so that the experiment has good power properties and hence low type II error rates. . . . This book is an excellent introduction to the problem and whets the appetite to find out more." --The Statistician "A success. . . . For graduate students, there is no question about the book's value. I think that all graduate students should be advised to read this book before starting significant projects such as a dissertation." --Journal of Marketing Research The authors introduce a simple technique of statistical power analysis that allows researchers to compute approximate sample sizes and power for a wide variety of research designs. Because the same technique is used with only slight modifications for different statistical tests, researchers can easily compare the sample sizes required by different designs and tests to make cost-effective decisions in planning a study. These comparisons, emphasized throughout the book, demonstrate some important principles of design, measurement, and analysis that are rarely discussed in courses or textbooks. This book therefore serves not merely as a "how-to" reference for sample size calculations but also as a guide to some general principles of cost-effective research. ... Read more

Book Description

Word problems are the most difficult part of any math course –- and the most important to both the SATs and other standardized tests. This book teaches proven methods for analyzing and solving any type of math word problem. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Great book, but not an introduction.
This book is very readable if you have some knoledge about quantum mechanics. It shows how to calculate things using the theory but does not explain the physical part in much detail.

It makes a good companion to the Feynman book where you have the physics greatly explained but little mathematical detail.

If you are new tho the subject look somewhere else first. If you want to know how to get results from the theory this is the book. ... Read more

Book Description

Integration is one of the two cornerstones of analysis. Since the fundamental work of Lebesgue, integration has been interpreted in terms of measure theory. This introductory text starts with the historical development of the notion of the integral and a review of the Riemann integral. From here, the reader is naturally led to the consideration of the Lebesgue integral, where abstract integration is developed via measure theory. The important basic topics are all covered: the Fundamental Theorem of Calculus, Fubini's Theorem, $L_p$ spaces, the Radon-Nikodym Theorem, change of variables formulas, and so on.

The book is written in an informal style to make the subject matter easily accessible. Concepts are developed with the help of motivating examples, probing questions, and many exercises. It would be suitable as a textbook for an introductory course on the topic or for self-study.

For this edition, more exercises and four appendices have been added. ... Read more

Book Description

The Riemann zeta-function embodies both additive and multiplicative structures in a single function, making it our most important tool in the study of prime numbers. This volume studies all aspects of the theory, starting from first principles and probing the function's own challenging theory, with the famous and still unsolved "Riemann hypothesis" at its heart. The second edition has been revised to include descriptions of work done in the last forty years and is updated with many additional references; it will provide stimulating reading for postgraduates and workers in analytic number theory and classical analysis. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Oxford strong on salas and hille's little o(h)
One does a google search of
"spotter 7, coastwatch, truk lagoon, south pacific"

Up pops the missing associativity quaternion... rather simple.

Now... then Nash's ordinal and quaternions for taste.

If one's sister is a Bonnie Ploger Ken Y. Bonnie J. Ploger at Hamline...

The internet religious fall river line.

Ord def for beta called for.

What is the axiomatic language of the Riemann hypothesis?

Ordinality, Zermelo, Schroeder, Peano.. Hamilton.

What is the associativity of this "Christian" presence on the
internet other than a sister named Bonnie?

If Nash is right, the zeta function is an onerous axiom.

spotter7, coastwatch, truk lagoon, south pacific

Complete source of the zeta function
This is the true encyclopaedia of the zeta function. Although I prefer Ivic, I always have the feeling that Titchmarsh wants to appear brilliant.

This book cannot be criticized because of the amount of time and effort that must have been spent on it. It was update in 1986 by Heath Brown.
It is useless to summarize the contents because it mainly has everything, and most theorems have several proofs and very long comments.
One thing that is missing is more stuff about prime number distributions (for this, check Ingham, Edward's, and a bit of Ivic's).

It never becomes redundant, and it can either be used a source for additional information, as dictionary, or it can be used in a linear way.

An very comprehesive book for Zeta Function.
Titchmarch is well known in the theory of functions, in this book, he described the Riemann's Zeta function in the most comprehensive way. ( e. g. in the topic of functional equation, he quoted 7 methods) I cannot find any other book more comprehensive than this one. ( though in order the theories, you must have some background knowledge and patience ! ) ... Read more

Book Description

This book contains a collection of tales about mathematicians and the mathematical, derived from the author's experience. It shares with the reader the nature of the mathematical enterprise, and gives a glimpse of mathematical culture. The book brings legendary names to life, and shares little known stories about names we have heard all our lives. The book is written in a brisk and engaging manner and it also includes a number of attractive photographs and illustrations. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Rather colourless
I thought this book would be about the non-mathematical lives of famous mathematicians, and I was not proven wrong. The problem is that it is a compilation of one-paragraph anecdotes of many matehmaticians' lives, which makes for good coffee table reading and not bedtime reading. There is very little substance to any of the lifestyles of any of the characters.

The accounts themselves relate to the famous and not-so-famous, but many of them are questionable as to whether they actually deserve to be in this book as they are may times simple accounts of a person's daily life - chronicling the events that happen to many of us on a daily basis.

I summary the stories are too brief and there are other (better) factual books on the real lives and histories behind mathematics and mathematicians.

Stories about mathematicians as storytellers
Quite against the opinion of many, mathematicians are people too. They have quirks, foibles and eccentricities that are only slightly different in kind from those possessed by the remainder of the population. If you doubt that statement, read this book and be convinced. The author has collected together a set of the most interesting short stories about people, independent of the fact that they do math. It is funny, insightful and can be read by anyone. After I started it, I found it very difficult to put down, and I highly recommend it to everyone, whether they can balance an equation or not.

Published in Journal of Recreational Mathematics, reprinted with permission. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

A valuable reference work, with one flaw
I thoroughly enjoyed hunting in this book for various conversion factors, and would recommend it with just one reservation.

Unfortunately, the authors were somewhat arbitrary in deciding which units any particular one would be converted to. If I had written this book, I would have included at least the following for each unit: (1) All other units in the SAME system (i. e., if we are talking about a pre-revolutionary French unit of length, all other pre-revolutionary French units of length) and (2) the nearest-sized SI unit. Unfortunately they frequently leave out conversions between units of the same system that would be useful, and often units of the same approximate size are converted to different SI units, making comparisons difficult. (For example, one foot-size unit may be expressed as so many centimeters, while another as such a fraction of a meter.)

Both of these omissions can be circumvented by using a calculator and working with what these authors have chosen to include, but the book would be easier to use if they had done what I would have.

More info then you'll ever need
This little book has saved me a couple of times. Full of data, tables, conversions, etc.... Spend the money and get yourself a copy. You'll be amazed how often you reach for it.

Great source of conversion factors.
This is a handy book with literally thousands of conversions. Look up your unit, and convert to metric, or convert from a metric unit to your unit. The units are identified by the country of origin including ancient Greece, Rome, Egypt, China, etc. ... Read more

Book Description

Imre Lakatos' philosophical and scientific papers are published here in two volumes. Volume I brings together his very influential but scattered papers on the philosophy of the physical sciences, and includes one important unpublished essay on the effect of Newton's scientific achievement. Volume 2 presents his work on the philosophy of mathematics (much of it unpublished), together with some critical essays on contemporary philosophers of science and some famous polemical writings on political and educational issues. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Comprehensive
The author introduces the main lines of discussions in epistemeolgy and philosophy of mathematics in a very understandable but comphrehensive way. It is a brilliant reference book for the subject which also contains so-far unpublished articles of the author. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

More Rigorous Than Some Introductory Texts
I purchased Introduction to Metric and Topological Spaces two years ago. I was unprepared for its rigor. I am not a mathematics major, but I enjoy reading mathematics. My background includes calculus, linear algebra, differential equations, and other applied mathematics, but I have not had a course in real analysis. W. A. Sutherland intended this text as the next step after analysis.

After a brief foray, I retreated, placed Sutherland back on my bookshelf, and attacked some marginally easier introductory texts: Metric Spaces by Victor Bryant, Introduction to Topology by Bert Mendelson, and most recently, several chapters in Introduction to Analysis by Maxwell Rosenlicht. I periodically return to W. A. Sutherland's text to measure my understanding. I am now working on chapter five, Compact Spaces.

I doubt that Introduction to Metric and Topological Spaces would be foreboding to students that are familiar with real analysis. Sutherland understands that the abstractness and generalization can be difficult and shows concern with motivating the student. He repeatedly attempts to illustrate the value of generalization, especially in the study of continuity.

Sutherland often uses a lengthy series of examples of increasing difficulty to illustrate abstract concepts. In his discussion of metric spaces, we begin with Euclidian n-space metrics, and move on to discrete metric spaces, function spaces, and even Hilbert sequence spaces. He introduces open sets and topological spaces in a similar fashion.

The author occasionally suggests that the student might wish to make a geometrical diagram to help clarify some subtle point, but Sutherland includes few geometrical drawings in his text. His focus is clearly on proofs using the axioms of metric spaces and topological spaces.

Sutherland highlights sections that either require more knowledge of abstract algebra, or for other reasons are thought to be more severe.

Despite Sutherland's use of Introduction in the title, I suggest that any reader considering independent study might defer tackling Introduction to Metric and Topological Spaces until after completing a more basic text. Possibly a better title might be A Second Introduction to Metric and Topological Spaces.

An excellent, concise book on topology and metric spaces.
I enjoyed reading this book because of its clarity, conciseness, and nice way of relating topological and metric spaces. This book is ideal for the student who is learning about these subjects for the first time, whether or not they intend to do more advanced work on the subject. The reader who wants to go on and learn about more advanced topics, should consult Munkres's book.

A great self-contained text
A lot of books on topology assume some basic knowledge of real analysis, which can throw a lot of readers off. This book starts from the very beginning, and thus is truly a great introduction. Each section has some good exercises, with even a few pointers at the back of the book for the more challenging ones. It starts with topological aspects, and then refers to them in the case of metric spaces (amongst many others), which is a much better approach than most other books, as the reader doesn't take the details of the specific to the general. A great little book, which is a must for most advanced maths Analysis courses. ... Read more

Book Description

This text is a solid revision and redesign of Charles Hicks' comprehensive fourth edition of Fundamental Concepts in the Design of Experiments. It covers the essentials of experimental design used by applied researchers in solving problems in the field. It is appropriate for a variety of experimental methods courses found in engineering and statistics departments. Students learn to use applied statistics for planning, running, and analyzing as an experiment. Students learn to use applied statistics for planning, running, and analyzing an experiment. The text includes 350+ problems taken from the author's actual industrial consulting experiences to give students valuable practice with real data and problem solving. About 60 new problems have been added for this edition. SAS (Statistical Analysis System) computer programs are incorporated to facilitate analysis. There is extensive coverage of the analysis of residuals, the concepts of resolution in fractional replications, the Plackett-Burman designs, and Taguchi techniques. The new edition will place a greater emphasis on computer use, include additional problems, and add computer outputs from statistical packages like Minitab, SPSS, and JMP.

The book is written for anyone engaged in experimental work who has a good background in statistical inference. It will be most profitable reading to those witha background in statistical methods including analysis of variance. This text is suitable for senior undergraduate/graduate level students in mathematics, statistics, or engineering. It is appropriate for a variety of experimental methods courses found in engineering and statistics deparmtents -- majors in this course are usually in applied statistics; non-majors, in industrial and electrical engineering, or education and life sciences. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Fundamental Concepts in the Design of Experiments
This book is very valuable for those actively engaged in the conduct of experiments, either operational or developmental in nature. It does require someone with a background in statistical methods using analysis of variance. The user needs to have a good understanding of statistical inference. There are many good working models of various analytic procedures provided.

Excellent, if you already know theoretical statistics
This book is written for people who already know the theory of statistics and want to do statistic consulting.

The author begins with the basics of design of experiments: experiment, design and analysis. Then a brief (lovely) review of statistical inference follows; including: Estimation, test of hypothesis, power function and some easy applications.

In the following chapters almost all statistical methods are presented; among others: single factor experiments, randomized block and latin square, factorial experiments, nested, experiments of two or more factors, 2^f -, 3^f factorials, split plot design, Taguchi, regression and finally miscellaneous topics including covariance analysis, response-surface experimentation and more.

After each chapter there are problems and answers to odd-numbered problems can be found at the end of the book. Included is a practical summery with all methods presented in one table. Additionally you find a glossary of terms used in statisics, statistical tables and an index.

The examples in the book are analysed using SAS. Knowing that S-Plus is much easier to handle (and knowing that SAS is frequently used in the industry), this is very useful.

The mathematics used is easy, but - as mentioned in the preface - the fundamental concepts of statistical inference must be known.

Statistics by example only - very little theory/concepts
After using this book for a class, we all agreed that this book was not the best for those of us who are just learning the concepts in analyzing variance. The author tends to assume the basics are "hard-coded" into the students head. Fair enough. His next step, however, is not to discuss the theory/concept. Rather, it is to give an example of what he is talking about, hoping you will grasp the concept. It would very helpful to have the concepts explained and then the examples given. In addition, the notation (subscripts) are not always explained, nor are the formulas obvious/straightforward. Finally, the book has editing problems.

A better editor and supplementary manuals (step-by-step explanation of concepts and formulas, SPSS instruction, etc.) would be a big help.

My recommendation would be to find another book from which you will learn statistics. ... Read more

Book Description

The book presents a thorough development of the modern theory of stochastic approximation or recursive stochastic algorithms for both constrained and unconstrained problems.There is a complete development of both probability one and weak convergence methods for very general noise processes.The proofs of convergence use the ODE method, the most powerful to date, with which the asymptotic behavior is characterized by the limit behavior of a mean ODE.The assumptions and proof methods are designed to cover the needs of recent applications.The development proceeds from simple to complex problems, allowing the underlying ideas to be more easily understood.Rate of convergence, iterate averaging, high-dimensional problems, stability-ODE methods, two time scale, asynchronous and decentralized algorithms, general correlated and state-dependent noise, perturbed test function methods, and large devitations methods, are covered.Many motivational examples from learning theory, ergodic cost problems for discrete event systems, wireless communications, adaptive control, signal processing, and elsewhere, illustrate the application of the theory.

This second edition is a thorough revision, although the main features and the structure remain unchanged.It contains many additional applications and results, and more detailed discussion.

Harold J. Kushner is a University Professor and Professor of Applied Mathematics at Brown University.He has written numerous books and articles on virtually all aspects of stochastic systems theory, and has received various awards including the IEEE Control Systems Field Award.

G. George Yin is a Professor of Mathematics at Wayne State University.His research interests focus on applied stochastic processes and stochastic systems theory; he has been a major contributor to stochastic approximation theory. ... Read more

Book Description

Professor Hilary Putnam has been one of the most influential and sharply original of recent American philosophers in a whole range of fields. His most important published work is collected here, together with several new and substantial studies, in two volumes. The first deals with the philosophy of mathematics and of science and the nature of philosophical and scientific enquiry; the second deals with the philosophy of language and mind. Volume one is now issued in a new edition, including an essay on the philosophy of logic first published in 1971. ... Read more

Book Description

This textbook provides a wide-ranging introduction to the use and theory of linear models for analyzing data. The author's emphasis is on providing a unified treatment of linear models, including analysis of variance models and regression models, based on projections, orthogonality, and other vector space ideas. Every chapter comes with numerous exercises and examples that make it ideal for a graduate-level course.

All of the standard topics are covered in depth: ANOVA, estimation including Bayesian estimation, hypothesis testing, multiple comparisons, regression analysis, and experimental design models. In addition, the book covers topics that are not usually treated at this level, but which are important in their own right: balanced incomplete block designs, testing for lack of fit, testing for independence, models with singular covariance matrices, variance component estimation, best linear and best linear unbiased prediction, collinearity, and variable selection.

This new edition includes discussion of identifiability and its relationship to estimability, different approaches to the theories of testing parametric hypotheses and analysis of covariance, additional discussion of the geometry of least squares estimation and testing, new discussion of models for experiments with factorial treatment structures, and a new appendix on possible causes for getting test statistics that are so small as to be suspicious.

Ronald Christensen is a Professor of Statistics at the University of New Mexico. He is a Fellow of the American Statistical Association and the Institute of Mathematical Statistics. ... Read more