Prolegomena to a Middlebrow Arithmetic of Curves of Genus 2

'… this textbook provides an excellent treatment of the subject of the basic algebraic geometry (and arithmetic) of genus 2 curves and would serve as a useful introductory text for graduate students.' A Maciocia, Proceedings of the Edinburgh Mathematical Society

• Background and conventions; 1. Curves of genus 2; 2. Construction of the jacobian; 3. The Kummer surface; 4. The dual of the Kummer; 5. Weddle's surface; 6. G/2G; 7. The jacobian over local fields; Formal groups; 8. Torsion; 9. The isogeny; Theory; 10. The isogeny; Applications; 11. Computing the Mordell-Weil group; 12. Heights; 13. Rational points Chabauty's theorem; 14. Reducible jacobians; 15. The endomorphism ring; 16. The desingularized Kummer; 17. A neoclassical approach; 18. Zukunftsmusik; Appendix 1. MAPLE programs; Appendix 2. Files available by FTP.